The Grey Knight
by Jasper98
Summary: The exile of a rogue Jedi survivor is interrupted by a plea for help, and Caro Tejal finds herself at the helm of a slave rebellion in the quest to free a planet. In the fight to free Nikara from the Empire's grasp, Caro finds herself torn between who she was, and the pull to the dark side that threatens all whom she holds dear.
1. Chapter 1

**One**

Caro could feel the sun on her skin as she took a deep breath in through her nose. She was seated cross-legged on the shaded pavilion, facing the rising sun. Around her, the creatures of the forest were just beginning to arise, the calls of birds and other animals filled the air. The day was beginning, the balance of night and day coming to an equinox. This was her favorite time of day. The inner peace and mindfulness that nature brought her helped to bring her back to a time when the galaxy was at peace, before things had gone so far awry.

"Are you done with that?" Caro's eyes snapped open, hearing Ferren's teasing voice, and she slowly turned, giving her a smile.

"About to be," She returned, getting to her feet. "What's bothering you now?"

"I need you to come into Cho Gopan with me," Ferren returned. She was already fully dressed, wearing her blaster on her hip and boots. "We're low on generator parts."

"So?" Caro smoothed out her sand-colored tunic so that it hung straight. "You don't need me to help you with that."

Ferren looked a little sheepish, casting her green eyes down for a moment. "I was talking with Miki Rui yesterday," She said, her teasing disappearing. "She told me that Imperial soldiers were spotted in the marketplace - "

"Stormtroopers," Caro said bitterly. "That's who they are."

Ferren nodded, noticing her friend's sudden shift in behavior. Caro wouldn't like where this was going. "You don't have to even do anything," Ferren added. "It's just… I would feel a lot safer if you were there."

Caro sighed, walking past Ferren and beginning to cross down the stairs spiralling down towards the rest of the house. "You know I don't like this," She frowned, and Ferren hurried after her.

"And you know I wouldn't _ask_ unless it was really important," Ferren countered. Caro paused in the living room. "I'm worried about the generator, especially with the rainy season approaching soon. I just need you to be there, in case something happens, I - "

"I'll go," Caro sighed, pulling on her boots and taking her cloak. "I don't like it, but I'll go. You do all the talking."

"Thank you," Ferren sighed, watching as Caro pulled the cloak's hood over her head, hiding most of her face. "I'll make it up to you, I promise."

They shared the speeder to the trading outpost in silence, but Caro had a bad feeling about this already, something deep inside her was telling her that this was a mistake. She kept her hands concealed within her robes as they parked just outside the outpost gates, and followed Ferren like a shadow through the crowds of people. They passed by a handful of vagrant Ryn, who were hawking trinkets close to the gates, an Ithorian shopkeeper setting up a display of waterproof ponchos, a Caamasi vendor stirring something in a large pot that smelled delectable and reminded Caro that she hadn't eaten yet today.

Ferren paused before Bole Avo's shop, looking towards Caro. "Will you stay outside or go in?" She asked. Caro could already hear the Sluissi moving around inside, his serpentine lower half making a slithering sound on the floor. Bole was a friend. Caro knew that Ferren would be safe inside.

"I'll wait outside, if that's alright," She returned, and Ferren nodded with a promise to return swiftly. Caro made herself look busy, picking up a water purifier outside of Bole Avo's shop and toying with it in her hands, without really looking. Her attention was on the streets around her, with all of the people bustling about.

To those who knew Ferren Soto, they knew Caro as Jyoti Amita, Ferren's cousin who had come to live with her. It was a believable enough lie. Both Ferren and Caro were human, and lucky enough to share at least dark hair, but they shared no blood in common. Their bond had been forged two years ago, when Caro had been betrayed by those she trusted. Ferren was more of a sister now than anything else.

Caro's attention was snagged by the gleam of white helmets, and her entire body stood on edge. _Do nothing to draw attention to yourself_ , she thought fervently. _Focus on the water purifier. Pretend you might buy it._

"Out of the way!" One of the stormtroopers shouted, and Caro looked up to see them shove aside a male Ryn, overturning his table of wooden trinkets and sending them scattering into the street.

 _Don't instigate_ , she told herself, clenching and unclenching her fists. _This is not your fight_.

Her weapon burned against her thigh, concealed by two layers of clothing underneath Caro's cloak. It was there for the direst of emergencies, and only that.

"You can't touch these!" The Ryn male cried indignantly. They were beginning to draw a scene. "You have no right!" One of the stormtroopers swung out with his blaster, whipping it across the trader's face and sending him crashing to the ground.

"You are interfering with an official investigation - " Came the retort, and without control, without thinking of what she was doing until it was far too late, Caro charged forwards, pushing her way through the streets. She shoved past the others in the crowd and moved herself into the opening, stepping between the Ryn and the stormtroopers. Blood ran from the Ryn's beakish nose, and his tail curled up defensively beneath him. He looked up at Caro in shock, and Caro knew this was reckless, knew this was stupid, but it was too late to stop now.

"Get out of the way!" Caro was met with a shout, the flash of a blaster, and she drew herself up to full height slowly, her eyes centering in on the helmet of the trooper obviously in command.

"There is nothing of importance here," Caro said, struggling to keep her voice level amidst the outrage that she felt. "Take your investigation somewhere else."

It felt as though the entire marketplace had fallen silent, and Caro tried to keep her mind level. _Balance, balance_. The stormtroopers didn't move, but didn't speak. "You will leave Cho Gopan," Caro tried again, lifting her chin. "You will not find what you are looking for here."

The trooper cast a glance to the two that flanked him on either side. "We'll leave Cho Gopan," The leader said slowly, convinced. It took everything Caro had not to throw her head back in a sigh of relief. "What we're looking for isn't here."

The Ryn looked up at Caro in awe, and she knelt down to help him to his feet, pulling her hood closer around her face. Behind her, the stormtroopers left, turning around and heading back where they came from. "Don't speak of this," Caro said darkly, as the Ryn wiped the blood from his face with a handkerchief. "You should take your people and leave Cho Gopan for now. It's not safe for you here."

The crowd was hushing around them, bubbling with excitement over what had just occurred, and Caro tugged her hood over her head more tightly, slipping back into the crowd from whence she came. There were whispers, floating around her, dangerous words being spoken, and Caro knew that she had already done too much, made a scene when it was dangerous for her to do so. She moved back towards Bole Avo's shop with an added urgency. It was crucial now that she grabbed Ferren and they left Cho Gopan, quickly.

Suddenly, Caro felt a hand reach out, take her by the arm, and she wheeled around, her hand flying to her hip. A young human man stood before her, dressed in fine clothes, all in black, with a stately cloak in forest green. His dark hair was too-neatly combed for someone who lived in the wooded planet of Sud Y'Shul, and his eyes were too eager for someone who had just observed what Caro had done.

"I need to speak with you," He said, his voice pressed, and Caro shoved him off, her heart racing.

"Leave me alone," She said brusquely, trying to make it to the shop. They had to _go…_

"I know what you did," The young man said, his eyes eager. "You used a Jedi mind trick on those stormtroopers to make them leave."

Caro's eyes flashed, and she gave the man a look that would have frozen water. "There are no more Jedi left," She said darkly, turning and charging away from him. The young man began to trot after her through the crowds, and Caro turned away from Bole Avo's shop, leading him away from Ferren.

"Except for you," He returned, keeping pace with her. "I know who you are, you're - "

He was cut off when Caro seized him quickly by the front of his cloak and dragged him into an alleyway, throwing him up against a wooden wall. "You won't meddle in other's affairs if you know what's good for you," She hissed, baring her teeth. Exhaling, she let him down, centering herself again. She met his gaze, trying to gather the same resolve she had used with the stormtrooper, trying to hide how shaken she was. "You will leave Cho Gopan. You will forget you saw me, and everyone here."

She released him, raising her hood and turned to leave. She had to get Ferren, they had to flee...

"Caro Tejal," He said clearly, and she froze. No one had spoken her true name but Ferren, and no one had spoken the full of it in years. She turned, slowly, to see him watching her carefully. "Mind tricks don't work on me, Grey Jedi."

Caro turned and burst into a run, her cloak flying behind her. She knew that he pursued her, and she had the feeling that things were about to get ugly, and fast. Ferren was just stepping out of the shop, a bag in hand, and Caro seized her by the hand, tugging her into the crowd, out of the outpost.

"What is going on?" Ferren cried, wrenching her hand free and keeping pace with Caro.

"I've been discovered," Caro said darkly, leaping onto the front of their speeder and revving it on. Ferren hopped onto the back, and turned around.

"By the guy in black?" She asked, pulling out her blaster. He was hopping onto a speeder of his own, and Caro pulled out of the outpost, shooting through the forest. She had the speeder on maximum, ducking over and under trees, swerving off the path to try to lose him. Behind her, Ferren wrapped one arm around Caro and twisted in her seat, aiming the blaster at their pursuer.

"Wait until we're out of sight of the trading post," Caro called, flying over a fallen log. "Don't hit a civilian!"

"I'm a better shot than you give me credit for," Ferren muttered, firing two shots out. The young man behind them swerved out of the way, just missing a tree.

Caro's heart was pounding inside her chest, and she concentrated her entire effort on navigating through the dense forest, the tall trees only barely providing cover as he was right on their tail. Ferren fired more shots, and Caro listened for the explosion of his speeder that didn't come. He was too close, but he wasn't firing back, only dodging and following.

Having her cover blown would not only mean certain death for Caro, but likely for Ferren as well. All of the Jedi were supposed to have been eradicated, with the straggling survivors of Order 66 being hunted down like animals and murdered. Caro's very existence put Ferren at risk, and she realized that this man's life put theirs in jeopardy.

She had to end this.

Far enough aways from the road, and away from anyone around who might see or overhear, Caro pulled the speeder to an abrupt stop, leaping off. She stood amidst the towering trees, pulling her lightsaber from her robes. He already knew too much. He could die seeing her blade.

"Are you insane!?" Ferren screamed, leaping behind the speeder and dropping to a knee, aiming her blaster at the young man as he slowly got off of his, raising his arms above his head. His frantic eyes went from Caro to Ferren, and he paused when he saw the blaster aimed at his chest. Caro inhaled heavily, feeling Ferren's eyes on her back. She could practically hear her friend's voice in her head. _Well? Won't you kill him?_

"Jedi, I need your help," The young man cried, dropping to his knees before them both. Caro stepped towards him, activating her lightsaber. He flinched, seeing the golden, glowing blade and the vibrant hum. "My name is Etka Liserian, envoy of Her Royal Highness Princess Songeni Tau of the planet Nikara," He cried, rushing his words. Caro could sense his anxiety, the fear in his heart. "There have been rumors of your existence, of Jedi surviving the killing order. I've been looking for you for nine months."

"What do you want from me?" Caro said darkly.

"My people have been forced into slavery," Etka continued. "The Suban people invaded our planet and have massacred thousands, enslaving the rest. Princess Songeni has been forced into hiding off of the planet, and the rest of the monarchy has been uprooted and destroyed."

"The Suban's are backed by the Empire!" Ferren cried out. "Caro, this is suicide!"

"We need a you to help us defeat the Suban people," Etka rushed. "So the Princess can be reinstated upon the throne, and my people can be free. Jedi, you can help us. Our resistance is weak and unorganized - they'll listen to you! Someone with - with your abilities, your strength in the Force, you can save us."

He exhaled, watching her with wide eyes. Etka wasn't lying to her, Caro could feel it. She looked at him, at his shoulders rising rapidly up and down with each shaky breath. Ferren was right, leaving Sud Y'Shul was a massive risk, and revealing herself to a group that had allied itself with the Empire was a death wish.

But an inner voice spoke to her, a calling of the Force, the same call that had led her to protect the Ryn in the marketplace. She wasn't anymore, but she was once a Jedi Knight. Caro exhaled, deactivating her lightsaber.

"Get up."


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you so much for the support that this has already gotten! I will try to update every few days or so but due to the fact that I have work all day I don't have a lot of free time, so I appreciate your patience in advance. Also, please excuse any liberties I may take with the Star Wars Universe, the Force, scifi technology, etc. I'm not an expert on these things. With that being said, here's Chapter 2! Enjoy!**

Two

Etka gave Caro a look of misunderstanding and confusion, cocking an eyebrow upwards.

"I said, get up," Caro returned, and he slowly got to his feet. His hands were still raised above his head, and his gaze flickered over to Ferren, at the blaster she still had trained on him.

"Can you lower that please?" Etka asked, his voice rising. "My blaster is in my speeder - "

"No," Ferren said curtly, hopping out from behind the speeder and stepping up beside Caro. She looked up at her friend in disdain. "Caro, this is insane. If the Suban realize a Jedi is helping the slave resistance, the Empire will be on top of you in an instant. They'll destroy you."

Caro was silent. Ferren lowered her blaster, just slightly, and gave her a look of pure exasperation. "Are you actually considering this?" Ferren paused, as Caro clipped her saber back to her belt, tucking it beneath her robes. "You aren't actually considering this. Caro - "

"I can't - " Caro snapped, and then calmed herself, steadying her voice. "I can't stay here and do nothing, not when people are suffering, dying. He's telling the truth."

"You'll die - "

"I can't stay here and do nothing," Caro repeated. "It's wrong. I can't - this isn't who I am, Ferren."

Her green eyes sparkled with indignation, and Caro knew that her friend was holding her tongue, biting back an argument. Ferren's jaw tensed and shifted, and her eyes darted around the forest around them, searching for the words to say. Finally, her glare turned towards Etka, and she swung the blaster back at his chest, making the young man flinch. "Do you realize what you're asking?" Ferren demanded, charging towards him. "She could be killed for what she's doing for you! The Empire would be foaming at the mouth to tear someone like her to shreds! You don't - "

"Ferren, enough!" Caro shouted, and Ferren paused. She had backed Etka up into the base of a tree, and slowly turned, her cheeks flushed with color. Caro could be impulsive and occasionally became angry, but never at Ferren. "There are people who need me. I'm not going to hide the rest of my life away doing nothing with no purpose. Whether you want to come or not is up to you. I'm going regardless."

This stung, and Caro regretted how she had said it as soon as the words had come out of her mouth. Ferren closed her opened mouth, and swallowed tersely. "Fine then," She snapped, stewing. Caro was about to speak to Etka when Ferren quickly added with a shout. "But you're wrong if you think that I'm going to let you walk in there by yourself. I don't trust him." She flicked her blaster at Etka before sheathing it, and Etka slowly lowered his arms.

Caro lowered her voice, turning her shoulder to Etka and facing Ferren, touching her arm. "I didn't mean to yell at you, and I'm sorry," She said, her voice firm and serious, but still gentle. "But this will be dangerous. I don't want you to feel like you have to come because of me."

Ferren's eyes flickered, and a small smirk lilted up her face. "I don't want to hide the rest of my life doing nothing with no purpose," She said.

That stung, but Caro knew she deserved it. "How did you get here?" Caro asked Etka. "Do you have a ship?"

"It's docked a ways beyond the outpost," He said, eyeing the pair. "Next to Lake Gaol'doon. I understand if you need to collect your things…"

"I will," Ferren said, morosely looking towards the speeder. "Lock up the house. I'll tell Miki that we went to visit an uncle."

* * *

Etka followed them back to their house, riding alongside them at Ferren's insistence. The three of them stepped into the little forest cottage, and Caro walked upstairs to the pavilion, standing and looking over the forest around her, possibly for the last time. Underneath her feet, Ferren was gathering supplies - credits, food, clothing. Caro had learned to live without many material objects a long time ago.

She knew this mission was putting her in danger, and she knew that Ferren's outrage and indignation was only because she was scared. Going to Nikara and aiding the slave revolt as force-sensitive and wielding a lightsaber was only going to alert the attention of the Empire. She had narrowly escaped the massacre of the Jedi. Was it really worth it to risk her life again? Or was she spitting on the sacrifices, the lives lost of all those who had died? Her mind went to Ki-Adi-Mundi, and felt the pain in her heart, the same pain she had felt when her Master had died. A true Jedi would not have turned a blind eye to a people in need. That's what he would have said.

"I'm not a Jedi anymore," Caro whispered, gripping the railing of the balcony. But she still was going.

She heard footsteps, heavier than Ferren's, and turned to see Etka Liserian trotting up the stairs, pausing at the top. "Ferren is ready," He announced, watching her carefully. "You won't take anything?"

"I have what I need," Caro said calmly, taking her leave from the balcony. "I am ready."

Ferren was downstairs waiting for her, and Caro knew that she was upset. The house had belonged to her and had been where they had lived together for two years. It was painful for the both of them to leave. "You'll be back here," Caro told her, stepping outside.

"So will you," Ferren returned evenly, almost goading Caro to disagree with her. She didn't.

It was their turn to follow Etka to his ship, taking the speeders - far more slowly this time - through the forest. They bypassed Cho Gopan, and Caro could only see flashes of the buildings and market stalls through the trees. It was better to be out of sight this way. Ferren drove, and trailed Etka alongside the lake. It was the best spot to fly out of Sud Y'Shul from their location, but that wasn't saying much. Most of the planet was covered in dense forests, and the lake, while open enough, left them incredibly vulnerable.

Finally, they reached Etka's ship - an older two-level model cruiser. It was heavily scraped up on the sides, with pieces of the ship's hull obviously having been replaced. Ferren was looking at it in disgust, appalled. "We can't ride in that, we'll fall apart before we break the atmosphere," She muttered, casting a glance towards Caro.

"There's space enough in the cargo hold for both speeders," Etka announced, not hearing what she had said. He got off and parked at the base, before opening the cockpit door. As the cruiser ignited into life, Caro and Ferren parked the speeders in the hold beneath, watching as the back doors closed shut. Caro felt a tightness in her chest, as they heard the sharp clang of metal on metal and the forest around them was shut off. She couldn't get a good feel on what this new mission would bring for them, but she felt an ache in her heart as she looked at Sud Y'Shul for the last time. She was not coming back.

Caro followed Ferren upstairs to the cabin, where Etka was busy at the controls. "Have either of you ever co-piloted before?" He asked, and Ferren and Caro gave each other a look. Ferren rolled her eyes and Caro laughed.

"Ferren is the one you want," She said, taking a seat behind the cockpit as Ferren sidled in the chair beside Etka's placing the headset on and activating the controls without a word from Etka. "She can tinker with anything mechanical and make it work. And she's a far better pilot than me."

"You're being modest!" Ferren sang, keeping her eyes on the dashboard. When Etka looked at her for clarification, Ferren added with a grin towards Caro. "She's piloted fighter ships before - I've seen her."

"We should be in good hands then," Etka passed a nervous smile. "As long as we can break the atmosphere without the stormtroopers noticing us, we should be fine.

They took off over the surface of the lake, the blasts from the ship pushing back the water in a massive wake. From the air, Caro could see the planet in a whole new light - the vibrant healthy greens of the forest, the rich browns of the earth, and the sparkling blue water that reflected patches of sunlight in blinding rays. They had become one with the sky now, and Caro realized that she had seen this view only once before, long ago, when Ferren was flying a much smaller ship, and Caro was still badly hurt.

"Message being transmitted," Ferren reported, eyeing the dash nervously. Etka shared a worried look with them and pressing the button to turn it on.

"This is Imperial legion 267. Do you have clearance to leave?" Came the hard, male voice over the intercom. Instantly, the cabin turned sour, too small, too hot. Caro felt her heart pounding in her chest, but she kept her face calm.

Ferren shot Etka a look. "Does this thing have blasters?"

Etka's face washed over in panic and he slammed his hand over the receiver com. "The mic is still on!" He hissed, his eyes growing wide. He ran a hand through his long brown hair, gritting his teeth. "And yes, but only front-facing."

"Impossible to hit them then," Caro frowned, as Ferren shut off the transmission. She got up, taking off her headset and passing it to Caro. "Copilot this thing," She said, heading towards the hull of the ship.

"Where are you going?" Caro cried in alarm, as the transmitter screen blared red before her. On the radar, two other ships, smaller than theirs, were rapidly approaching.

"Lower the hull doors!" Ferren shouted, before descending down to the bottom level, blaster in hand. "I'm going to shoot them off!"

"What?!" Caro shrieked, her voice rising. She turned to Etka, who looked just as stunned as she did. "She's insane…" Caro muttered, whipping her headset off and tossing it into the seat behind her. "She's insane!"

"Where are you going?" Etka cried after her as Caro was about to jump to the lower deck.

"You just focus on piloting the ship," Caro told him. "I'm going to make sure Ferren doesn't kill herself."

"Or get us all killed," Etka muttered darkly, returning to the controls. "Lowering the doors!"

Caro hurried down to the hull and saw Ferren gripping a support beam, one leg wrapped around it for support. The hull door had been opened and the wind inside the hold was so powerful that the secured speeders rattled and shook, crashing against each other. Caro gripped the wall for support, bracing herself for fear that she would be thrown out. Their ship was speeding over the treetops, climbing higher and higher and higher...

Behind them, two Imperial TIE fighters were trailing their path, spiking dread in Caro's heart. They were certainly faster, better equipped, better piloted than this tin can they were riding on. And they stood a massive chance of obliterating them all before they even broke out of the atmosphere.

"Let Etka outrun them!" Caro shouted, her voice barely heard above the roaring winds. "It's too dangerous!"

Either Ferren didn't hear her or was ignoring her completely, because she leaned forwards, and began to fire out the back. The red beams from her blaster shot out of the back of the ship and instantly, the TIE fighters began to fire back. She was relentless, her finger pressing as hard as the trigger could take. A volley of shots rained from the back of their ship like a waterfall, some actually hitting their target, others flying beyond into the sky. The ship rocked as Etka began to maneuver them away, dodging blasts from the TIE fighters, and Caro lurched to the side, nearly losing her grip and tumbling out of the hull. They would soon be tossed out of the ship like toys, she realized, or all be thrown into flames from enemy fire.

"We have to shut the hull door!" She shouted, slowly inching forwards as carefully as she could. "Ferren!"

"Hang on!" Ferren shouted, firing and striking one of the fighters just where it needed to be. The enemy ship sparked, black smoke trailing in tendrils out of one of the wings before the entire thing exploded into flames, spiraling out of the sky and crash landing into a canopy of trees. The downed ship left an angry red stripe in the earth as its wake, like an ugly wound.

Caro gave her a look of awe for a moment, before grabbing her by the arm, pulling her back. "That was great, but we have to go!" Ferren nodded, her whole body electric. She shook herself off and wrapped her free arm around Caro, pulling herself upwards and out. Caro let Ferren climb up to the top deck first, her hair whipping around her face as she looked back behind them. The second TIE fighter had sustained some damage as well and was slowing. They might just make it.

"I can't believe you made that shot," Etka breathed when they both had surfaced, shutting the hull door beneath them. Ferren grinned, taking her seat beside him in the cockpit, and Caro exhaled in relief as they broke out of the atmosphere, shooting into space. It had begun. They were on their way.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi everyone! Thank you for your continued support of the story! I decided to slightly alter the story's title, changing it now to "The Grey Knight". I just felt that it was more fitting to the story. I may be making slight revisions/additions to previous chapters as I go along (nothing major) because this is a work in progress. Anyway, please enjoy!**

* * *

 **Three**

Caro sat in the back of the ship, as Ferren and Etka copiloted, digging through Ferren's backpack for something to eat. Selecting a maize roll, Caro broke it open. It was the first thing that she had eaten all day.

"Where is it exactly that we're going?" Ferren asked, turning in her seat so that she could look at both Caro and Etka.

"The Princess is on the planet Aether," Etka replied. "I'm taking you both there first. We'll regroup, gain forces, and then travel to Nikara."

"Aether?" Ferren repeated. "That's thousands of kilometers away. We'll be on this ship _forever."_ She threw herself backwards into her seat, sighing petulantly. "Caro, will you give me a roll?"

Caro was sitting too far back to gently throw it, and placed the remainder of her roll in her mouth before selecting another from the bag. "Here," She said, levitating it across the ship and into Ferren's hand. Caro sat back, crossing her legs over each other.

Etka was watching her, a strange look on his face. "How - how is it you can do that?" He asked.

"The Force gives me these powers," Caro said, leaning back. "I am just a woman otherwise."

"But how?" He pressed. "I do not understand…"

"The Force is with us, all around us," She replied, echoing the words of her Jedi Master. "Emitted from every source of life. Others like me who are sensitive to the Force can use it to our ability."

"Others like you?" Etka slid forwards in his seat excitedly. "How many others?"

"There once were many," Caro said, feeling as though someone had driven a blade through her chest. "But not anymore."

"What do you mean?" He pressed, but Caro stood up, looking downwards. She saw Ferren give him a look, shaking her head to stop asking questions.

"I-I don't want to talk about it," Caro said abruptly, turning and going towards the steps down to the bottom level. "I'm sorry."

She turned and hurried down to the bottom level, struggling to keep her emotions in check. It had been two years, _two years_ , and yet the pain of the Jedi slaughter was still fresh in her mind, still hurting, aching like a raw wound. Losing Ki Adi Mundi, her friends, the ones she had known since she was a padawan all the way up to Knighthood… it had never become any easier.

Caro turned her face upwards, trying to staunch the threat of tears. "There is no emotion, there is peace," She whispered, her voice trembling. Ever since she was a child, she had been taught to recite the Jedi code as a means of meditation, of calming herself. "There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion…" She paused, her voice becoming hard, and she ran her hands down her face, catching her tears. "There is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony… There is no death, there is the Force."

She had to have strength. It was the only way to survive. Caro closed her eyes, sitting down once more and inhaling deeply. She would meditate, reflect. She would heal.

* * *

Caro heard gentle, tentative footsteps, and opened her eyes. She was expecting to see Ferren, but was surprised to find Etka standing before her, wearing a cloak and a blaster attached to his hip. "We're here," He said quietly, and Caro exhaled, standing slowly. Etka cleared his throat. "Caro, I'm sorry for pressing earlier - it was insensitive. I shouldn't have been asking so many questions."

"It's alright," She said, as they left the cruiser out of the cargo hold. "You didn't know."

Etka was quiet for a moment, his cloak billowing in the breeze that passed over them, and Caro realized that she was underdressed for Aether's weather. "It's just, I've never met a Jedi before," He said, looking at her sheepishly.

"I'm not a Jedi anymore," Caro said, looking across the landing pad at the climate around them. "That's who I used to be. It isn't who I am now." Aether was a mountainous planet, the landscape around them covered by steep, brown walls tarnished by stones and snow. She and Etka were looking over a steep valley, the other side barely a hundred meters away, and for kilometers in either direction, the winding path of the canyon was visible. Their altitude was incredibly high, and the ship was docked on a narrow landing surface, carved out of the surface of a face of a mountain.

Within the loading bay, several men and women, dressed in identical clothes as Etka's of black and grey were hurrying towards, wide eyed, staring. Caro could hear their whispers, and knew that they were all flocking to see her. _The Grey Jedi… Jedi Knight…_

Ferren appeared, hopping off the top deck of the ship and trotting over beside them. "This place is desolate," Ferren remarked, unimpressed. "So barren and rocky, and you can't see anything because of the mountains…"

"It's the perfect place to hide a princess," Etka said, giving her a grin. "Come on. We'll go inside."

They were escorted deep within the hangar, and Caro found that the place was carved deep within the side of the mountain, nearly invisible from any passerby and especially to someone looking in from space. She pulled her hood up, draping it over her hair which had been left loose and flowing down her back, and kept her hands folded within the loose fabric of her robes. She did not acknowledge the Guards around her who accompanied them and stared blatantly at her, at her lightsaber now freely exposed at her hip. Truthfully, her heart was slamming inside of her chest, but Caro had been taught how to guard her expression, to never let strangers know how she was truly feeling. She was nervous, feeling trapped underground, but took comfort with Ferren at her side.

They were brought to a large hall of sorts, well lit and filled with people. The walls were white, and those around them stopped what they were doing, staring at the little parade that had begun to follow the trio as they passed. Clusters of people of all sorts were milling around - obvious soldiers in uniform, wielding blasters and looking official, weary elderly men and women sitting around, accompanied by the occasional droid. To Caro's surprise, there were even children, running around the open space, climbing up the walls, laughing, oblivious. Nearby were tired parents, many single mothers and fathers. Caro could sense the weight that they carried with them, the pain that they had endured. _For their children._

"This is the base for the Resistance," Etka explained. "We've been conducting rescue operations, shuttling refugees from Nikara to stay here until we can get the planet back. Most of the families that you see are refugees, but we have many of our soldiers and officers here as well. Politicians, leaders, the like."

"Captain Liserian," A towering man with dark skin and a deep voice approached them, saluting Etka. His eyes went over to Caro in her robes, and widened at the blade at her hilt.

"We need to see Her Highness right away," Etka told him. "This is Ferren Soto and Caro Tejal. She is the one we've been trying to find."

"This way." They were told, and led out of the hall and into an amphitheatre style room. Their party was on a small stage at the base level, which was flanked by large pillars standing alone, emitting a soft, glowing light. The people there were not in their seats, however, but milling about in clusters, talking amongst themselves. The chatter slowed when the trio entered the room, and people instantly began to hurry to their seats, a low murmur forming amongst them. There was one person who didn't rush, a young woman was ebony skin, her coiffed hair pulled back and adorned with a headdress of gold-plated feathers, extending back from behind her ears. She walked slowly to her seat at the center of the amphitheater, her emerald gown flowing elegantly behind her. She was composed, her face impassive, and Caro wondered if she had noticed them or not. _The princess_ , Caro realized.

"Your Highness," Etka bowed, crossing his arm over his chest and bending gallantly low. "May I present, Caro Tejal and her companion, Ferren Soto."

Both Ferren and Caro bowed politely before her, Ferren more reluctantly so. "This is the Jedi?" The princess asked, skeptical.

"Don't look so disappointed -" Ferren snapped, growing cross, but Etka shot her a look.

"How can we be certain that this is not...an imposter," Songeni looked around at the Council behind her, uncertain. Caro saw that she was clasping her hands together before her on the table. "You do realize what is at stake here. If she is not who she claims to be - "

"Your Highness, I promise you, I've seen what Caro can do," Etka returned, sensing that Ferren was growing hot-tempered and the Council was growing uncertain. "She _is_ a Jedi… well, was." He added, casting a look over at Caro. "I can personally attest to Caro's skills, and both she and Ferren would be excellent assets to the Resistance."

"Show us something," A man called from the stands above them, and Caro narrowed her eyes. "Use the Force."

"The Force is not a party trick," Caro returned scathingly. "I am who I say I am, and I've already agreed to help you. That should be enough."

"She has a lightsaber…" Etka added weakly.

The Council began to murmur amongst themselves, and Ferren cast an annoyed look at Caro. "We should leave, this is absurd," She muttered, turning to go. But Caro was indignant. She hadn't left Sud Y'Shul only to be stopped now.

Caro lifted one of the lights alongside the ground around them, sending sparks as she heaved it through the air, raising it high above her head so that everyone could see it. Beneath the pillar, Etka instinctively grabbed Ferren, dragging her backwards and away from the suspended pillar, and Ferren was too shocked and perhaps a bit afraid to push him away from her.

"Is this enough for you?" Caro shouted, and the entire room fell silent. "Or can we get some work done? If I recall correctly, you have a planet enslaved and people to liberate."

Songeni slowly rose to her feet, staring at Caro with her mouth open in stunned shock. Indignant, Caro slammed the pillar down at Songeni's feet, causing the floor to shake and the room to burst into gasps and small, frightened cries. Caro straightened up, her eyes locked on the princess.

"It is true," Songeni breathed, her eyes wide. An awestruck smile, faint, but visible, flickered over her face. "You are real, Grey Jedi. Help has finally come." She gave a blunt exhale, and then a breathy laugh, turning to address her Council. "This is a day of rejoicing! Nikara will be free again."

They were welcomed by a feast, with Caro, Ferren, and Etka being given seats of honor near Princess Songeni. They were flanked by officers, members of the Resistance who had seen combat, who had escaped the brutality of the Suban, who both participated in the festivities, eating and drinking with mirth and debriefing them at the same time. Officer Tullik Suresh, who had greeted the trio upon their arrival to the base was seated across from Caro, and amidst bites of food explained their situation.

"The situation on Nikara has become ugly. When you're not hiding underground, you'll have to be in disguise as a slave," He explained darkly. "It's impossible to hide as a free person amongst the Suban people, so any work you do out in the field will have to be undercover."

"They're about three metres tall," Etka added, talking around bites of food. "With gangly arms and narrow heads with huge eyes. They don't look very sturdy, but they're a lot stronger than they appear."

"Tarak said that he saw someone get ripped in half by one of those _things_ once," Tullik muttered. "I'll be a happy man when I see them all dead, and then I'll piss on their graves."

"Cheers to _that,"_ Came a few replies and promises to drink.

"What will we be doing when we arrive there?" Caro asked, leaving her own drink untouched.

"I'll be going with you to an underground base near the equator," Etka told her. "There's a small resistance pocket there, a few leaders that have infiltrated with the general population. We'll be working with them to topple the regime established there, and free the nearby city. This should spark resistance movements across the planet to do the same." He noticed Ferren giving him a skeptical look. "It's the best plan we have

"And I…" Caro added. "I'm to kill the Suban."

"Take out their leaders," Tullik clarified. "Weapons are hard to come by on the ground. And you… you're what we've been praying for. Those stalk-heads won't be able to touch you. Jedi are unkillable."

Caro closed her eyes, shaking her head and looking down at her bowl of food. "That's not true," She said quietly. "But I'll do the best I can."

They were set to leave that night, concealed in a cargo ship bound for the city of Yliad. The ship would be piloted by droids, so that human pilots would not be suspicious, and concealed within cargo crates, Resistance fighters would be waiting to be "intercepted" by undercover ground forces there. Caro, Ferren, and Etka, with several others, would spend hours in an empty freight container on the trip to Nikara.

Ferren was already bemoaning their method of travel as the crew prepared to depart. "I hate small spaces," She sulked. "We're going to be trapped in their for hours like...like…" She slowed when she saw Etka and Tullik approaching, remembering the background from whence they came.

"It'll give you some empathy then," Tullik remarked, and Ferren gave him a look. Caro was standing not far away, leaning against the ship. Full from the feast beforehand, she was trying to stretch her legs before the journey ahead. Logic told her to get some rest, but she knew that wasn't going to be possible.

"Caro Tejal." She turned at the sound of the cool, collected voice, and was surprised to see the princess standing behind her. Her fine jewelry was gone, her emerald dress replaced by dull grey robes. And yet, she was still beautiful, her elegance and grace still emanating from her stature.

"Your Highness," Caro bowed politely. "What brings you here?"

"I wanted to express my apologies for earlier," Songeni said, her eyes soulful and sincere. Caro was taken aback. "In person, away from everyone else. Since the occupation, it has become incredibly hard for my people. Thousands have died, millions are under the heel of cruel masters. There isn't much hope and I wanted… I wanted to be sure that we weren't putting our faith into something that wasn't real."

"It is a gamble, Your Highness," Caro returned evenly. "If you'll allow me to be open with you, I cannot possibly do all the things that your people claim that I can. They think that I'm the solution to all the horrors that are going on, but I cannot single-handedly uproot a system in place, expel the invaders - "

"I know this," The princess said, gently interrupting her, and Caro couldn't help but be surprised. "But you were a Jedi, a people who were supposed to be eradicated, destroyed. And yet you live. You survive in spite of what you endured, and so have my people. They see you, and you give them hope. You survived, so they can too."

Caro didn't know what to say, looking over at the rest of her party boarding the ship. "You have to go soon, I know, Grey Knight," Songeni said. "But please accept my blessing, and my wishes for your safety upon my home planet."

"Thank you," Caro said, bowing her head. "It is my wish to see you back on the throne. I'll do my best." Caro turned away from the princess to join the crew.

"And Caro?" She turned, seeing the princess with a faint, albeit confused smile upon her face. "I heard this before, in my studies from my advisors. I, well… may the Force be with you."


	4. Chapter 4

**Four**

Ferren was pacing the walls of the freight container, her steps even, syncopated, never ceasing. Etka, Tullik, and a few other officers were trying to rest, grumpily casting Ferren looks as she restlessly walked, and Caro sat in the corner, her legs folded and eyes closed in meditation. She matched her breathing with Ferren's steps. _One, two, three, in… four, five, six, out…_

This had been going on for hours. Outside the freight container, Ferren heard the sound of the crates moving around outside, them, scraping up against each other and with the walls of the ship. With this all in tandem, it was impossible to sleep - without regard to the brewing anxiety and fear in all of their hearts. Every one of them was armed, but

The sides of the crate began to creak and groan, and those who had been trying to sleep quickly lifted their heads, their hands going to their weapons. Caro stayed seated where she was, her eyes on the door, as the crate tilted slightly downwards and was slid out of the belly of their ship. They had arrived.

The crew could do nothing but wait as they felt the crate move around them, hearing muffled voices from outside. Everyone was silent within the crate, and they waited for what seemed like forever, but was really truly only half an hour, listening, holding their breath.

Suddenly, the doors creaked open, and Caro leapt to her feet, her hand on the hilt of her blade, her eyes hard, narrowly watching the door. Would they have to fight their way out of here? Light slowly poured into the crate, and they heard a female's voice gently calling to them. "It's alright," She said softly. "You're safe here. Come out."

They stepped out into a dimly lit area, and Caro realized that it was still nighttime on Nikara. They were surrounded by a mix of people, some wearing the grey resistance uniforms, but most wearing worn tunics and trousers, clothes patched and roughly sewn together, frayed shoes and boots that were far too worn. It felt good to stretch her legs, and Caro looked around while Etka and Tullik greeted the female officer.

She was in a large hangar that appeared to having not been touched for decades. The walls were dusty and the paint faded, and the small space in front of them that was open to the terrain consisted of a dusty grassland, surrounded by a crumbling wall. "The base is fully functional," Etka appeared alongside Ferren and Caro. "I know it looks decrepit, but that's on purpose. The Suban think that this hangar hasn't been used in years."

"Well it's doing a great job serving its purpose," Ferren remarked sarcastically and Etka rolled his eyes as Tullik hurried up towards them, carrying what looked like burlap sacks in his arms and a backpack over his shoulders.

"We're going out into the field," He explained, passing them out, and Caro realized that they were robes, meant to hide their clothing and maintain their cover. "We're supposed to meet Isran Dyonin out by the River Kenzi."

"Well, let's get going then," Etka said, leading Caro and Ferren out of the hangar and into the space outside. "It's going to be a long walk." It was comfortably warm for nighttime, and along the wall, barely visible and especially to someone far away, she could see guards keeping watch from all directions. Oddly enough, Caro felt safe, but knew that this was quickly going to fade when they stepped out beyond the walls. Outside, nothing was guaranteed.

"We have to walk?" Ferren cried indignantly, pulling the rough robes around her shoulder as they walked. "Ugh, I'm exhausted," Ferren muttered and Tullik turned back towards her with a grin, his teeth flashing white against the night around them.

"I told you you should have slept on the flight over," He teased, jogging with Caro and Etka as they moved through the tall, sand-colored grasses. Not far ahead, the grasslands began to rise in gentle hills.

"We have to be as quiet as possible now," Etka explained. "There are patrols that come through this way sometimes. It's best not to draw attention to yourself."

They moved carefully through the grasses, pressing themselves against sides of the hills as they approached and stayed low to the grounds. Ferren kept stealing worried glances towards the sky, covered in a mosaic of bright, twinkling stars. Caro was doing the same, her heart pulsing a sturdy beat in her chest.

She parted the grasses and passed through the hills, where they came upon a narrow, shallow river, lazily winding through the plain. Along the other side were a series of low hills, beyond that flickering lights and towers not far in the distance, and a man, hooded and sitting against the hills to avoid detection from above. He started when he saw the party of four appear from the grasses, and bolted to his feet, drawing a blaster of his own.

"Captain," Tullik stage-whispered, holding his arms out, empty. Ferren's hand instantly went to her hip, slowly lifting her weapon out of the holster, and Caro stood close by, her hand on the hilt of her saber. "It's Tullik Suresh, and Etka Liserian. You're safe."

"Who is with you?" He demanded, not lowering his blaster. This had to be Isran, Caro realized. Their contact.

"This is Caro Tejal and Ferren Soto," Etka called out, keeping his voice low. "Caro is the _Jedi - "_ Etka's voice choked over the word, and he cast a glance Caro knew that he was making the effort to be sensitive, but how could anyone else really truly describe her without that word? _Ex-Jedi… Jedi rogue… Grey Jedi…_ "They both have come to help us."

"Jedi…" He repeated, looking skeptical. Isran lowered his weapon, just slightly. He was a tall, lean man, with hungry eyes and a day's scruff canvassing his face. "There's no such thing."

"Is this going to happen every time someone meets Caro?" Ferren remarked, sighing angrily. "Because it's getting pretty old - "

There was a scream of an engine tearing close by, and all of them flinched, looking around, drawing their weapons. Ferren's words froze in her mouth. Isran was the first to see it, and dropped to a knee, pressing himself up against the hillside and drawing his weapon. Caro saw a speeder careening towards them from the other side of the river and concealed by the hills. It was piloted by a Suban wearing dark clothing. They were even more terrifying up close. With a towering lanky body, it's arms were attached abnormally long at it's sides, looking more like clubs steering the speeder in their direction than anything else. But what was most unnerving of all were the eyes, large, oblong, and blacker than the night sky, devoid of any sort of warmth.

"Escapees!" The Suban cried, slowing the speeder and pulling out a blaster the length of Caro's leg. "You will be eliminated -"

Caro launched herself up the hill, throwing herself in the air with a flip and activating her lightsaber. Her yellow blade swung through the air in a wheel of color, slicing the speeder from the top of the handlebars down through the engine, sending the Suban careening into the river. The thing looked at Caro in what could only be described as pure horror before Ferren's blaster was trained on his head, firing several shots in rapid succession. There were flashes of light, and the Suban's body convulsed before falling still, lifeless, half covered by the water, the scars of the fallen speeder beside him.

They were all silent for a moment, ears ringing, hearts racing, before Caro gently deactivated her lightsaber, the sheathing sound breaking the spell. Isran was the first to turn.

"What have you done?" He shouted, growing furious. "That was incredibly reckless! Someone easily could have seen!" He charged towards Caro, grabbing her by the arms. Without thinking, she sent him flying off of her with the Force into the side of the hill, her palm outstretched, her mouth twisting in anger.

"Don't you _ever_ lay your hands on me!" She snapped, and he looked at her with a mix of shock and fear.

"Don't - " He fumed, straightening himself upwards with much less gusto. He brushed down his clothing indignantly. "Don't use that _magic_ on me ever again."

"What would you have had me do, _Captain?"_ She seethed. "Let him capture us all? Or worse?"

"You've alerted anyone nearby of our position!" Isran hissed, scanning the horizon. "And what are we supposed to do with the body, the speeder? We can't even use it now - "

"That's _enough_ ," Ferren exclaimed, cutting Isran off. "She just saved you from getting shot, lighten up."

"We can alert someone back at the base to clear away the evidence," Etka pushed himself in between them, speaking placatingly. "It'll be _fine._ We're here to discuss the meetings you've had with those underground leaders nearby. Do you think we'll be ready for an uprising to retake Yliad soon?"

Isran bristled, extending an icy glare towards Ferren and Caro. "Not yet," He said brusquely. "It's too soon, and many fear that their forces aren't strong enough, and the repercussions that could follow if it were unsuccessful."

"Yliad is relatively isolated," Etka returned. "If we retake the city, we could hold it for some time until surrounding areas are taken back."

"But that all relies on taking the Capitol," Isran disputed. "Which we don't have the arms, or the soldiers for. If we can take out the governor, and his successors, that would disrupt the whole system of hierarchy. Then - _maybe_ \- you would be able to get the support you need and the people would revolt. But now it's too soon."

"What can _we_ do?" Tullik asked, sliding his backpack off of his shoulder and offering it out to Isran. "This is for you, by the way."

Isran took it, looking a little embarrassed, and Caro looked away. "I don't -" He stopped, mid-sentence, his eyes catching something beyond Tullik's shoulders. His whole body went rigid and he tossed the backpack over his shoulder. "There's another patrol in the distance - I see the lights."

"We have to leave," Etka pressed. "Will you be alright to go back on your own?"

"Come back with me, it's closer," Isran said, already rushing, turning up the hillside. "I can hide you amongst my people." The rest followed suit, and Caro cast a look over her shoulder, finding the blinking lights traversing the plain like a beacon. They began to make towards the settlement, backs stooped, trying as best as they could to hide amongst the grasses, dispersing in a formation that left Isran in the lead. The others flanked behind him, spreading out in a staggered line as they moved.

There was a mechanical roar in the distance, and Caro realized with a jolt that they had been spotted. "Run!" Ferren cried, and the pack began to bolt forwards, tearing paths through the grasses in their wakes.

"Stay close to me!" Isran cried, as the speeders were gaining traction. Etka pulled out his blaster and went to fire, but his shots were unsteady, missing their targets. Suddenly, Ferren knelt in the grass, the rest of the group tearing beyond her, and propped up her arm, closing one eye shut and aiming. She fired a volley of shots, blaster fire illuminating the plain. One hit its target and the blaster exploded, a plume of fire and smoke igniting the plain.

The other speeders began to fire in their direction, and Caro ducked instinctively, stumbling over the uneven ground. She went to draw her saber, but Tullik pushed her hand down, shaking his head. "Don't show your weapon," He said between breaths, pulling out a blaster. "It'll blow your cover. I'll cover you!"

Behind them, Ferren was racing to catch up with them, and Caro found herself instinctively slowing, so that she could keep pace. "I've got her covered!" Etka cried, circling back, his weapon drawn. "Go! Follow Isran!"

A volley of fire trailed them, striking the ground just breaths away from where their feet had trodden moments before, or hailing past them, singing hair and clothes and skin. _It was only a matter of time_ , Caro thought, _before -_

Ferren cried out, and Caro turned, seeing her friend stumble, her face twisting in pain, her teeth bared. Etka caught her before she could hit the ground, and Ferren staggered forwards, clutching her shoulder with her opposite hand.

"Ferren!" Caro shouted, panic rising in her voice. She stopped hard in her tracks, before turning back around and running without thinking towards her. Her hand went to her blade, ready to defend her from the ongoing assault of fire, when a shot zinged by her ear, going remarkably close to her head and striking an approaching Suban. Caro turned and saw that Isran had fired it, his arm outstretched, standing still.

"I'm okay! I'm okay!" Ferren gasped, gritting her teeth. Caro hurried to help Etka, who was half holding her up. "It grazed my arm, I'm okay!"

"You have to keep going!" Tullik shouted, as the walls drew nearer, made of what looked like dried mud and about three times Caro's height. Isran slipped in between them, hopping up a short set of stairs and and threw his back against the side, pulling each of them in one by one as blaster fire scarred the walls around them. He grabbed Caro by the arm, nearly yanking it in out of it's socket as he pulled her up through the stairs, to the false safety the quiet walls brought them.

Her heart was slamming within her chest, but no speeder could ever navigate the narrow passageways within the settlement. The clay walls were barely wide enough for two to walk side by side, and Isran was already beginning to lead them through, jogging through the streets, their footsteps against the hard ground the only sound amongst the night now.

They had a fighting chance. Caro believed it.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: Hi everyone! Thank you all to those who have continued to read this story and to all those who favorited and followed this story. I promise that things will start to pick up more now that the gang is on Nikara. Anyway, enjoy, and please review!**

* * *

 **Five**

"We have to be faster." Isran's whisper came over narrow passageways.

"Ferren is _hurt,"_ Caro snapped back, giving him a look. She held her by the opposite arm, helping her walk through considerable pain.

"I'm _fine_ \- " She disputed, but Isran shushed them both.

"We can't get caught," He urged, and when Caro saw the real fear in his eyes, she bit back her retort. They moved along the perimeter of the settlement, before they reached a tall, metal fence close to the edge. Beyond it, Caro could see small houses, shoddily built out of mud and wood. There were no lights within them, except for one in the distance, a much larger, more finely constructed building. She didn't know what she was looking at - only to find Isran crouching along the fence at the base, feeling around with his hand for a tear.

"They say the fence is electric but they're lying," He explained, his hand catching along a break in the seam. He pulled the wire outwards and stooped to go in. Caro realized that they were to follow him inside and her heart jolted in panic. Something was wrong about this place, she could feel it as she helped Ferren as she crouched down and crawled through behind her. There was deep pain here, and suffering, and loss, all within these walls. She felt this like a blow to her chest.

"Are you alright, Jedi?" Tullik asked her, and Caro shook her head, dismissing him. How could she tell Tullik what this felt like?

"This way," Isran murmured, keeping his steps quiet as he moved through the enclosure. He had grown remarkably more rigid, more tense since they had entered, and he looked distracted, tired.

Etka moved beside Caro and Ferren, speaking quietly so that Isran couldn't hear them a handful of paces ahead. "This is a grain farm," He explained. "The foods they harvest here is used to feed the Imperial army all throughout the galaxy."

Ferren's eyes widened in shock. "This is where the _slaves_ live?" She asked in disbelief. Her eyes widened in alarm and sadness with the realization. "These aren't homes, this isn't - "

"Keep your voice down. No matter what you see, _don't_ interfere," Etka warned, his voice low. "It will blow our cover and disrupt the whole mission."

Isran stopped at one of the little huts, knocking gently on the door. There was a small noise inside, and hesitantly, the door was pushed open. A girl a little younger than Ferren appeared, her tawny colored hair cut short like a boy's, piecey bangs hanging across her forehead. "Isran," She breathed, her shoulders sinking with relief. Her eyes caught the small party behind him, and narrowed. "Who are they?"

"Let them inside, they're with me," Isran returned, keeping his voice low. Reluctantly, the girl pushed the door open, and they filled in after her, shutting the door tightly behind them.

Inside was a small room, distinguished only by a tiny fireplace - unlit - along the side and a few pallets on the floor for sleeping. Measly blankets, threadbare and torn and stained were crumpled across the sleeping space, and that was largely it. The area was dark, there was only one window made of warped, marbled glass, aside from the door.

Another girl was sitting upright on one of the pallets, her back against the wall. Her face was identical to the girl who had opened the door, and Caro realized that they were twins, except… something was off about this girl. Her hair was long and thin, with stringy pieces hanging loosely around her face. But it was her eyes that were the most unnerving. Both were clouded blue, cataracted, and staring blankly beyond them all. She was blind.

"She's here," The girl said, her voice high and lilting, almost breathy.

"Who is here, Shilah?" Her twin asked, sounding tired, but Shilah didn't answer, finding her fingers and twisting them together, then picking them out again. The other girl sighed and lit a lamp in the center of the room, casting them all in a beacon of light and throwing their towering shadows against the walls.

"These are my younger sisters," Isran said, pulling one of the pallets away from the wall to expose a small pocket in the clay. He concealed his blaster there and pushed it back. "Twins, Jaya and Shilah. Jaya, this is Etka Liserian, Tullik Suresh, Ferren Soto and Caro Tejal."

Jaya passed a small smile to them all before turning to her brother. "What are they all doing here?" She asked, sounding concerned. "Did something happen?"

"We ran into some trouble outside the walls," Isran explained, his voice considerably kinder when he was speaking to her. "It was safer to take them here, for now." He took off his backpack and offered it to Jaya, who swiftly opened it and began to take out its contents. It was all provisions, food, flasks of water, medicines.

Caro and Ferren were kneeling by the hearth, the former examining the latter's wound. Ferren had pulled her sleeve down just slightly, where Caro could see the deep mark that ran across her upper arm. She needed clean bandages, medicine, but she would be okay. "How badly does it hurt?" Caro asked, her voice low. "Are you in much pain?"

"It just needs some air, it's hurting to have my shirt touch it," Ferren responded. "It's just a graze, thankfully."

"Take this." They both looked up to see Jaya standing in front of them, offering out a balm in a small, cylindrical jar. Both of them were stunned silent, and Jaya tossed her head, flicking her hair upwards, looking a bit flustered. "It-It'll help with the burn."

Ferren's eyes flickered towards the medicine pack in Jaya's hand, and back up towards her in awe. "That's yours," She said, shaking her head. A bashful smile crossed over her face, and she held up her hand. "Thank you, but I'll be okay. It's really just a graze."

"If you insist," Jaya said, sliding the medicine into backpack once more. "You're welcome to stay here overnight and use whatever we have." She cast a glance at her brother, who looked morose. "I just don't know what they'll do in the morning."

"We'll figure something out," Isran said, his eyes on the wooden door. "You should get some rest while you can. Shilah -" He took his sister by the arm with a surprising gentleness. She had wandered towards Etka and had pressed her fingers against his nose and cheeks, her eyes staring past his head but reading his face all the same. Etka was standing patiently still, watching her with a soft smile on his face. "I'm sorry," He murmured to Etka, who shook his head. "Shilah, go to bed."

She wandered over to the pallets and sat down. Jaya sat down beside Caro and Ferren, watching her sister. "I'm sorry about Shilah," Jaya said to Etka, who shook his head.

"Don't apologize," He said gallantly. "It's really alright."

"Has she always been blind?" Caro asked Jaya, keeping her voice low. She noticed Isran shoot her a look, eyes flared, angry. Jaya's face changed too, but differently.

"No," Jaya said. "She wasn't, and she used to be…well, like us too. It was during the invasion. She acted out against the Suban and they took her. We didn't see her for weeks, we thought that she was dead…" Jaya stopped, swallowing hard. Caro reached over, placing a comforting hand over hers. "She came back to us but they'd done something to her. We think it was torture, but she's blind now, and her mind… her mind's lost. She looks like she doesn't even hear what you say, and she says things that don't make sense."

"I'm so sorry," Ferren said gently. "That sounds horrific."

"She's lucky to have you both," Etka added.

"We should all try and rest," Isran said gruffly, sulking over to the sleeping area and lying down, turning his back to them all. "We'll figure out what to do in the morning."

That came before they knew it, and Caro found herself weary when they were all stirred awake by the sound of a tolling bell. She didn't remember nodding off, her head tilted against the wall and her eyes puffy with fatigue. Around her, Jaya and Isran were hurrying to wake up the rest, quickly getting ready, while their sister still lay in bed, peacefully asleep.

"How are you feeling?" Caro asked Ferren, stretching her legs within the cramped space. Her stomach growled with hunger, but she felt far too guilty asking for any sort of food from the Dyonin's.

"Sore," Ferren returned, tugging down the tear in her sleeve. "But I'm fine, really."

Jaya was getting her sister awake, gently pulling her upwards and into a standing position as Shilah slowly woke up, understandably confused and blinking. "You can't stay here, they sweep the cabins for people," Jaya said, her voice rising with urgency. She took a deep breath, trying to calm herself, gripping her sister by the arm. "And you can't hide in the head count either, they'll spot you right away."

"It's unsafe to try and leave Yliad now," Tullik frowned. "It's far too light outside - they'll see us straightaway if we leave the walls."

"We'll split up then, pair off and hide amongst the farm," Caro said resolutely. "After the head count, will it be possible to slip amongst your ranks again without being noticed?"

Isran and Jaya exchanged a look, and Isran nodded. "It's possible, but you have to be be constantly vigilant. If they _catch_ you -"

"We'll stay out of sight," Caro returned. "I'll go with Ferren, Etka and Tullik?" They nodded, as Jaya, Shilah, and Isran were hurrying out of the door.

"Wait a few moments and leave after we do," Isran told them. The room was filled with anxiety and everyone was on edge, standing, waiting. The door shut behind the Dyonin's and Caro felt her heart racing, watching outside the tiny window as blurred shapes began to congregate beyond the tolling bell. A minute passed, but it seemed like it was an hour, and Tullik moved towards the door.

"We'll go now," He said, bracing his back against the doorframe. "Keep your intercoms active. Let's try to reconvene with Isran later and figure out how we can get out of here."

Ferren and Caro nodded as Etka and Tullik hurried out the door, then stepped outside moments after them, listening as the tolling of the bell slowly came to a stop. Caro saw their counterparts move amongst the few lingering slaves walking towards the head count. "This way," Ferren whispered, grabbing Caro by the arm and leading her behind another one of the shacks, ducking behind the walls and out of sight. Approaching the clusters of houses was a Suban overseer, wearing a jacket with red trim to mark his distinction. Just seeing it walk was unnerving, with elongated steps that were at the same time graceful and jarring, as if it shouldn't be able to make them at all without falling over. Caro watched as the door to each shack was thrown open, the contents inside haphazardly searched. There was no respect for these people's dwellings, no order.

"Up here," Ferren said, jogging out of sight to the safety behind another shack. Just in front of them, hundreds of slaves were being made to stand in lines before a heavy mounted bell on a high tower made of bricks, with a pulley system in place to ring it. Overseers stalked down each line in turn, with large metal rods strapped to their belts and small instruments in their hands. Caro watched as one grabbed a man by the face, targeting the scanner at his eye. The machine whirred then flashed green, and the man was released, the overseer moving on to someone next. Retina scanners.

Caro spotted Jaya and Shilah standing next to each other in the row behind, with Isran only a few bodies away. Jaya and Isran looked apprehensive, while Shilah's face was vacantly blithe, her attention on something else beyond. The overseer approached, and Caro watched as Isran's retina was scanned and he was positively identified.

"See that up ahead?" Ferren pulled her away from the scene, pointing to the large building some ways left of the grain fields. "That's probably where the whole farm is being run out of. We should check it out."

"You're right…" Caro mused. "If the resistance takes over the farm, they'll need to be able to shut down any communication to forces outside it. We just have to find a way to get in -"

She was interrupted by a high-pitched scream, unrelenting and unbreaking, piercing the air, and Caro's head whipped back towards the line. One of the overseers had grabbed Shilah by the arm, and was trying to use the scanner on her eye. Shilah was screaming, not stopping as the overseer dragged her forwards out of line, commanding silence and complacency. Caro could see how panicked Jaya was from here, as she tried to calm her sister, pleading with her in hushed tones.

The overseer grabbed Shilah by the face, forcing it upwards, which only made things worse. Shilah gave a shriek as though her arm was being ripped out of its socket, and began to resist, her body thrashing and flailing. "She won't let you touch her!" Jaya cried, pulling on her arm. "If you just let her go - "

She was dealt a blow across the face, so severe that Jaya went flying into the dust before her, landing hard. Isran took a step out of the line, his eyes charged, his anger radiating from him like an energy field. Caro moved forwards too, her eyes flaring with anger and her hand on the hilt of her weapon.

"Don't intervene," Ferren whispered, grasping Caro by the arm. "We can't intervene! We can't compromise the mission, remember?"

"He just - "

"What is this?" Ferren and Caro both jumped, pressing themselves against the wall as an overseer shouted over the commotion in the yard. But it wasn't their discovery that was being noticed, Caro realized with a jolt, as Etka and Tullik were being brutally shoved forwards, the metal rod being wielded and crackling with electricity. Tullik was bleeding from his temples, and both were shoved to the ground with force. "Why aren't you in line?"

There was silence from Tullik and Etka, but Caro could feel the fear in their hearts, the resignation that they would soon die. "Does anyone else think it's a good idea to try and evade working?" An overseer shouted amongst the slaves. The only sound that could be heard was Shilah's quiet whimpering, Jaya's quieting breaths to comfort her. There was no answer, and suddenly, without warning, the overseer dug the electric prod into Etka's side. He screamed in pain, his face contorting with a grimace as he collapsed to the ground, his body going rigid. "We shall make examples of those who chose to disobey."

All the blood had drained from Ferren's face, and she silently looked towards Caro in fear. "Hold on and cover me," Caro said, her eye catching the belltower. "I have an idea."

She stood still, standing up straight and concentrated her efforts on the belltower in front of them all, extending both of her hands outwards. There was a deep rumble at the base, and the attention of the Suban overseers shifted towards the tower in surprise. Caro focused, flexing her fingers, and there was a loud crack as though the earth itself had split. The belltower broke down the middle and came crashing down against the earth, the bell tolling jarringly loud for a final time before cracking against the ground, exhuming a massive plume of dust.

Screaming began to ensue, and those closest to the fallen tower began to scatter, fleeing for their lives. This incited chaos, and Caro broke forwards, running in the midst of the crowds, with Ferren hot on her heels. Using the Force, she threw the Suban overseer that had discovered Etka and Tullik against the ground, his head hitting the wall of a cabin with a satisfying crack. Caro grabbed Etka by the arm, pulling him to his feet. "We have to go _now_ , while there's time." Caro told him fiercely, making sure that Tullik was with them before they began to run towards the tear in the fence. The commotion behind them was enough to distract the overseers, who were struggling to maintain order, and Caro covered the hole to the entrance, her saber drawn but not ignited as the last of her companions made it to the freedom beyond.

"No matter what happens, keep moving," Caro told them as they hurried towards the narrow, winding street passageways. "I'll cover you for as long as I have to. Just go."


	6. Chapter 6

**Six**

Etka could barely go any farther by the time that they reached the base, and Tullik was lightheaded, scarcely able to stay on his feet and propped up on Caro's shoulder before they were intercepted by a cluster of soldiers and medic droids. "Take them in," Caro assured them, guiding Tullik towards a stretcher. "He was hit in the head. I'm fine. I wasn't hurt."

Her heart was racing inside her chest, as she found a room for Ferren and moved along the corridors by herself. She was exhausted, but at the same time, sleep was the last thing on her mind. Caro desperately wanted to be alone, the thoughts, the experiences of Isran's family and the other slaves on the farm running through her mind. The pain they had felt, the disturbance in the Force hung heavily on her heart. _One of the hardest parts of being a Jedi is the weight_ , Master Ki had told her many years ago. _Because you feel so deeply the experiences of others, it is hard learning to let go. You carry that weight with you always, but it is a weight that gives you empathy and strength._

Caro found herself in an empty hangar, exhaling heavily. The suffering within the walls of the farm was seemingly insurmountable, and Caro felt the urgency of the resistance now more than ever. She would have to go back there and scope out the head building, to find its weaknesses for when they retook it, but all of her contacts here had been injured. She would have to go alone, Caro decided, and she would go tonight.

Already preparing herself, Caro took along a small backpack, bringing along tools and provisions for the Dyonin family, including painkillers for Jaya. That blow to the head was probably hard enough to knock teeth out, and she must be hurting something fierce. Her heart hurt for the twins, and the pain that they must be feeling.

This time, she would need a faster means of escape. Going on foot again would not be fast enough should she need to rapidly escape. Her mind crossed to their speeders in Etka's cruiser, and she started towards the hallway.

Caro had barely made it ten paces before she heard her name being called. She turned and saw Etka stepping out of an infirmary door, his one arm balancing a crutch. "Caro, I need to talk to you," He said, his voice sober. His youthful-looking face was uncharacteristically sour, his dark eyes narrowed, his brow drawn together.

"Shouldn't you be lying down?" Caro asked, already sensing where this was going to go.

"You should not have interfered back on the compound," Etka said stonily, speaking to her as if she were a child disobeying orders. Caro's jaw stiffened. "You could have been _seen_ , Caro. That could have blown our cover."

"I wasn't going to let you and Tullik fall prey to the Suban there," Caro said, slowly rising. "Having you _both_ be captured could have compromised the mission, had they decided to _torture_ you, perhaps, or found something on you that they shouldn't have. Ferren and I rescued the both of you and got you out of that mess alive. At least Tullik thanked me on our way back here."

Etka grit his teeth, his eyes flaring in indignation. "You don't know anything of what it is like on this planet!" He cried. "You're a stranger here, you don't know our customs, or our history. You weren't there for the invasion, or the carnage that followed. You have to put the life of the mission above the lives of individuals."

"You underestimate what I have seen, what I have experienced," Caro interrupted him savagely. "I may not have been there during the invasion, but this is not my first time in battle, nor will it be the last. I can help here, Etka, you just need to _trust_ me."

"I understand that you wield a great power, something beyond my comprehension," Etka said slowly. "And we need you, badly. You are a massive asset to the resistance based on your physical skills alone, to say nothing of your intellect. But you're too impulsive, Caro. How can I trust you when you throw a lightsaber into every fight, or topple a bell tower without any warning!"

"I did that to _save_ you and Tullik," She countered. "What do you want me to do, stand by and do nothing? You don't know me at all. I know what I am doing, and I have a better idea about the consequences of my actions than you might believe."

"It was still incredibly reckless - "

"I don't leave people behind, Etka. Ever." Caro looked at him indignantly. His jaw clenched, and he turned his face, struggling to find a retort to that. She had saved his life, after all. "I have to go," She turned away from him, not wishing to continue this argument right now.

"You're not leaving this base!" He called after her, but she ignored him.

She waited until twilight, eating lightly and sleeping once more before sneaking the cruiser out of the base and tearing across the fields under the scarlet setting sun. Her lights were off and her power low, so that she would not be seen, and Etka's orders were the last thing on her mind. Her robes billowed behind her in the wind of her wake, and her hair was bound tightly into a knot at the top of her head. She remained unnoticed as she drove around the walls of the settlement, scanning the low buildings and walls of clay until darkness fell. It appeared that most of Yliad consisted of the grain farm, with a few smaller dwellings and a substantial water mill consisting of the rest. The lifeline of the town was the grain farm, and if they could sever that, the place would be theirs.

Caro parked the speeder within the opening in the walls where she had first come in, praying that no one would happen across it and find their way to her. She slipped inside, walking slowly amongst the narrow passageways. Thoughts ran through her mind of the resistance base. Etka had specifically forbade her from leaving. What if someone had noticed she was gone? With a jolt, Caro realized that someone might be sent after her, and panic filled her veins. That would only complicate things and put another life's jeopardy in her hands. _You're reckless...impulsive..._

She swore under her breath and flicked open the intercom at her wrist, connecting it with Ferren. It rang for just a moment, the noise sounding extra loud amongst the quiet night, before Ferren answered. "Where are you?" She hissed, her voice low.

"I'm back in Yliad," Caro whispered. "I went to -"

"You're _where?"_

"I need to check out the center of the farm," Caro said, moving slowly down the path, keeping an eye and an ear out for any sounds or sights amiss. "It's easier to go by myself. I just wanted to tell you so at least someone knows where I am."

"Caro, you're insane!" Ferren cried. "What if you get caught?"

"I won't get caught," She returned, the sight of the farm coming into view. "I have to go, Ferren, I'm almost there. I'm going to check out the head building and gather intelligence. I'll talk later."

Before Ferren could retort, Caro cut off the radio channel, ducking under the broken seam of the fence and entering the compound. She slipped silently amongst the ramshackle cabins, a few lights twinkling in the windows. She stayed close to the shadows, wary that someone might look out their window and see her moving figure in the dark.

Caro located the Dyonin's dwelling and knocked softly on the door. There was movement inside, until Isran opened the door and stopped, staring at her in shock. "What are you doing here?" He asked defensively, his voice low.

"I came to check up on Jaya," Caro returned, casting a look over her shoulder. "Let me in."

He reluctantly opened the door and shut it fast behind her. Inside, Jaya was lying on one of the pallets, her bangs falling over her closed eyes. Her sister sat beside her, their hands folded together. Caro knew that Shilah couldn't see her, but she could obviously sense her presence. "Great pain, great suffering," Shilah said, in her usual emotionless voice that had the same disquieting effect on Caro. Was she talking about her sister, or something else? "There is a disturbance within the balance…"

Isran gave Shilah a confused, tired look, before turning his attention to Jaya, who hadn't reacted at all to her twin's sudden statements. "She's resting right now," Isran said. "She's in a lot of pain from where they hit her."

"I brought painkillers," Caro returned, taking out her backpack and kneeling beside Jaya, placing her hand on her forehead. The girl stirred, and Caro comforted her, gently bidding her still. "It's just Caro," She said quietly. "How are you feeling?"

"Terrible," Jaya moaned, clenching her eyes tightly shut. Caro took out her flask of water and offered the pills.

"Take these," She said quietly. "It should help."

Jaya breathed a quiet thanks as Caro stood up, turning to face Isran. He was watching her with his lips pressed tightly together, his straight, narrow nose drawn downwards. "Why are you really here?"

"I came to check out the head building here," She said frankly. "That's the epicenter of Yliad, isn't it? If we can capture that, we'll have the whole settlement, and I feel that day is going to come soon."

"And who authorized this, especially after the little stunt you pulled this morning? You're lucky that the overseer's didn't decide to lash out on _us_ for that."

"There is no _luck_ , only the Force," Caro returned evenly. "I knew what I was doing."

"Thankfully no one was killed," Isran glared at her, before turning, beginning to pace the small room. "No one from the resistance knows you're here?"

"I came by myself, and of my own accord."

Isran groaned, running his fingers through his hair. "You can't go near there, Caro, they'll find you. It's way too dangerous. You need to leave here, now."

"Believe it or not, I've dealt with tricky situations before," Caro snapped. "I think I can handle this." She opened the door and slipped out of the house, riled up and feeling angry. Why did no one here trust her? Etka had begged for her help, the Princess herself had told her how much they needed her and yet it seemed that Caro was trying to be stopped at every turn. How could she win?

She heard a door open behind her and turned to see Isran stepping outside, shaking his head and looking disgruntled. "What are you -"

"I'm coming with you," He growled, looking angry. She saw him adjust the blaster in his belt before pulling his robes over it. "I can't believe I'm doing this."

"I didn't ask for you to come with me," She countered. "I only stopped by to see Jaya, that's it -"

"And if you get captured, or killed?" He replied, ducking behind one of the huts. She followed his lead. "You're no value to the resistance dead, and since I _clearly_ can't make you go back -"

"Don't hold me up then," She retorted, moving past him and through the deserted yard. He followed her like a shadow, as they hopped over the rubble of the belltower and beyond the perimeter of the fields. Her heart was racing as they jogged past the grain fields, towards the massive center of the compound.

The building was three stories high, and made out of metal sheeting. Across the flat roof, small beacon lights flashed, casting Isran and Caro in bursts of red. The only entrance that they could see was at the front of the building, and guarded by two Suban soldiers, wielding heavy-looking blasters.

"What is inside that requires guards?" Caro wondered aloud.

"I don't know," He replied, his gaze shifting around the silent yard. "I've never been inside."

"There's got to be another entrance aside from the main one." She was already trotting around the border of the building towards the back, and Isran groaned, hurrying after her. She ducked behind a scraggly looking bush, watching the back of the building with scrutiny.

"This is my first time ever getting this close," He whispered, his hand on his blaster. "Caro, you've seen enough, this really is too dangerous."

"I didn't ask for you to come!" She retorted, becoming frustrated. With that, she burst forwards, running with her back bent over towards the center's walls. Isran groaned loudly before angrily charging after her. He never should have agreed to this, he should have stayed indoors, with his sisters, act like he had never seen her…

"There, what's that?" She pointed at a small, grated opening just ahead, facing a marshy area with a tiny, vacant pond nearby.

"I wouldn't know, ventilation?" Isran rolled his eyes.

"That's how we get in," She smirked, hurrying towards it and opening her backpack. "Cover me while I get this open." Caro began to tinker with the screws as Isran looked nervously around. His heart was racing at the thought of someone seeing them, for he knew that if he was discovered, Shilah and Jaya would pay the price as well.

"There," She grinned, lifting the grate cover off of it's hinges and sliding her tool back into her pack. Caro stooped to enter the vent, and Isran paused at the entranceway. "Are you coming or not?"

He sighed, following after her and pulling the grate back as best he could where he had found it. Inside the vent was pitch black, and Caro took out her lightsaber, activating it with a swishing motion. The blade gently hummed, and the yellow light provided a perfectly adequate torch. Isran flinched when he saw it, but didn't argue against her weapon this time.

They walked until they reached the end of the vent, which split off in two sides, one to the left and the other to the right. Both plunged into darkness and Caro felt conflicted, until she looked upwards. The vent travelled skyward, just narrow enough for someone to squeeze up there on their own and look through the small filtered light coming through. This was something!

"There's a light above us" Caro said, deactivating her blade and attaching it to her belt again. "I'm just going to climb up and see."

"And how do you think you're going to get up there?" Isran asked, as Caro leapt into the air, throwing her arms and legs out to the sides and catching them against the walls of the vent to prop her upwards with a grunt. Painstakingly, she pushed herself upwards, pressing out against the walls of the vent to support herself, until she could peek out through the slits in the vent.

Before her was a massive room, with a power generator, surrounded by large columns spanning three stories high. Her heart began to race at the sight of a Suban walking in, approaching one of the high columns and stopping at it's base. He typed in a sequence of numbers at the computer head there, and a contraption along the side of the column slid upwards, finding the desired selection, and removed it for him.

Caro's eyes widened in shock when she came to realize what she was looking at. The compound existed as a grain farm, but that was largely a front. They were concealing data storage, thousands upon thousands of files that could give them insurmountable access to the Suban occupation, and who knows what else. Access to these files would be vital in winning back the planet.

"What do you see?" Isran whispered hoarsely from beneath her, and Caro looked down, relaxing her grip. Before she could answer though, she found her legs gave way. She hit the side of the vent hard, before unexpectedly free-falling the multi-meter drop below.

"Caro!" He shouted, as a cry tore from her lips in shock, and before she could right herself using the Force, she found herself landing hard in Isran's grasp. He caught her underneath the arms and set her down, and she looked at him in shock, trying to slow the adrenaline that had surged through her veins from the fall. They exchanged a look of disbelief for a moment and he let go of her before Caro recovered, brushing herself off.

"We have to go," He told her, making towards the exit. "They probably heard you fall, but that was equally my fault as it was yours." She ignited her lightsaber and followed suit, running alongside him through the vents. Their footsteps echoed loudly within the small chamber, but their escape was the priority now.

"There are massive file servers within the building," She told him in a rush. "Invaluable data that could connect the whole planet! The grain farming is being used as a front. If we can get to those files -"

"You need to get out of the farm at once," He said stonily, jumping out of the vent and waiting for her to follow before roughly placing the cover back on. "They know we're here now. I need to get home, and you need to get _out -"_ He began to steer her back from where they had come, and she brushed him off, annoyed.

" _Isran,_ do you realize what this means?" She cried.

"I know what it means," He said brusquely. "But it means nothing if you or I end up dead. Put that _thing_ away or they'll see it. Go! I'll cover you."

Caro swallowed, giving him a look as she sheathed her blade, and began to run. Isran took out his blaster, holding it out and ready before him. She charged through the empty yard, running as fast as her legs could carry her, hurtling over the ground and the rubbish of the belltower before any Suban could even get the chance to catch up with them. They reached the clusters of homes and Isran didn't stop, driving onwards, his eyes scanning all around them for signs of trouble.

"I can take you up to here," He said, his chest rising and falling with heavy breaths as they slowed towards the fence. Caro ducked underneath "Make sure you get that information to the resistance."

"I will," She promised, before turning and running through the walled streets once more, not even feeling how tired her legs were before she nearly collapsed next to her parked speeder. Isran was right, she was no good to the fight dead. With that, she tore out of Yliad, racing back across the plains.

* * *

 **Thanks for continuing to read and for your continued support! Please review!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Seven**

Caro was met by cold faces and dark scowls when she stepped off of her speeder and entered the base hangar again. Etka and Ferren were sitting on a pile of crates, deep in discussion, and both looked up when Caro came through. Ferren hopped off, her face full of worry, and Etka - albeit more slowly - began to make his way over as well. "Where were you?" He snapped, growing cross.

"I went back to the compound on Yliad," Caro retorted.

"After I explicitly told you not to?" He shouted. "You have to learn to respect authority -"

"Who says that you have any authority over me?" Caro snapped. "I was under the impression that you needed my help, and I did!"

"Caro, no one except Ferren knew where you were!" He cried exasperatedly. "You could have been hurt, or killed, and no one would have known."

Ferren looked torn. "He does have a fair point, Caro," She said helplessly. "A lot of people were really worried, including me."

Caro swallowed back her retort, knowing that Ferren was right. Yelling and giving in to her anger would not solve things. She took a deep breath, bowing her head. "I'm sorry," She said, truly meaning it. "I should have listened, or at the very least told you what I was doing."

They were quiet for a moment, before Etka nodded, managing a small smile. "We're just glad you're alright," He said, leading them all back into the command base. "What did you go in there for anyways?"

"Well I went first to see Jaya Dyonin, I brought her some medicine after she was hurt this morning," Caro explained. "But then I went to explore the center of the compound, Isran was with me. Etka, the grain farm is just a disguise - the inside of the main building is filled with archives! The information there could connect the whole planet -"

"And ours to other resistance movements too!" Ferren jumped in eagerly. "Caro, this is great news!"

Etka's eyes widened hungrily, as though Caro had just presented a starving man with a feast. "I'll notify the Council at once," He said hurriedly. "Get some rest or something to eat. I'll send someone for you when the time comes." He trotted off down the halls with the news, and Caro relaxed. She wasn't the least bit tired; she wanted to get back in action. The liberation of Yliad was going to be very soon, she could feel it.

Ferren gave Caro a look after Etka had left, her lips twisting into a smirk. "You always have a way of pulling it together, don't you?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"You broke the rules to go on a solo mission, and yet you get off scot-free because you happened across information that was useful to the resistance," She grinned. "Only you could pull that off."

"I knew what I was doing," Caro laughed. "Anyways, you seem to be acting a lot nicer towards the Captain."

Ferren chuckled, having been put on the spot. "Well, once I realized that he wasn't lying about having you come here, I began to trust him a little more," She said, then quickly added with a grin. "But not completely. I think he's a nice guy at heart though."

Caro gave her a teasing look, and Ferren rolled her eyes, pushing her shoulder into Caro's good-naturedly. "I can't say he's a nice guy?" She snorted. "Come on, let's get something to eat."

* * *

The dawn of the next day had not yet risen, and Caro and Ferren were resting on sleeping cots, when Tullik came in to wake them. He sported a fresh bandage wrapped around his head and an urgent look on his face. "Caro, Ferren, the Council wants to see you right away," He announced, and Caro shot out of bed, already prepared. Ferren was slower to rise, grumbling out of her sleep, and had to catch up with Tullik and Caro as they strode quickly down the hall. "They want to know the details of what you saw, how you got in," He said, bringing her into a large, circular conference room.

A large, oblong table sat in the center of the room, with a map projected across the face of it in bright, neon colors. Surrounding the table were men and women, leaders of the resistance and wearing military uniforms. Etka and Tullik were amongst them, and Etka looked at Caro eagerly when she came in.

"Commanding officers, this is Caro Tejal," He introduced her, and Caro bowed her head politely in acknowledgement. "The Grey Jedi. Caro, this is General Citrine, the head of our operations here."

"We have been anticipating your arrival for some time," The general said, her voice smooth and even with age. Her grey hair was knotted into a low bun at the nape of her neck, and laugh lines creased around her eyes when she spoke. "It is an honor to have you here. Tell us what you have found."

"I snuck into the compound at night," Caro explained. "And I was able to enter the command center through a ventilation line coming out of the back, next to a small pond. The front entrance is guarded, and I can't speak for whatever else is inside. I climbed up inside the vent and saw file servers, at least three or four columns containing immeasurable information. The grain farm serves as a disguise. I believe the Suban are using this information to communicate throughout the planet, if not even the Empire itself."

There were murmurs across the room, quiet assurances of assent and excitement. Caro felt proud. "Would it be possible to access the servers through the same route you took?"

"I had to climb upwards through a vent, but with grappling hooks and some rope, you could get several men up through that way to access the servers."

"Then it becomes even more integral to liberate Yliad," The general announced. "I want a full report prepared with outlines on how -"

Suddenly, there were running footsteps from the hallway, and the whole room turned to see a female fighter race into the room, a metallic headset still wrapped around her forehead and ear, an intercom link in her hand. "I'm so sorry to interrupt," She breathed, stopping to catch her breath. "But we've just received a distress call from one of our contacts in Yliad."

"Distress call?" Etka repeated, his eyes going to Caro. They exchanged a glance, and suddenly it hit Caro, like a strike to the stomach. She knew what the soldier was going to say, she could feel it in her heart, bubbling up in her throat, choking her.

"The Suban have captured Captain Isran Dyonin," The soldier said. "He was found with his blaster, and they arrested him. Our contact fears that he's to be executed today."

Caro suddenly felt the room grow too hot, too small. "This was my fault," She murmured, grasping the edge of the table. Ferren grabbed her by the arm for support.

"Caro, are you alright?" She asked, and Caro shook her head, pulling away.

"This is my fault," She said more loudly, turning to address the council. "Isran was with me when I went to explore the compound center, he helped me to get away, but they must have captured him…" She ran a hand through her hair, feeling like she was about to suffocate on her guilt. She never should have been there in the first place, and now someone was going to die because of her recklessness.

"Caro, I'm sure that he knew how important getting this information to the resistance was," Tullik said gently, but she shook her head.

"No," She said, steeling herself with resolve. "I'm going to fix this. I have to go back to the compound."

"You're not going alone this time," General Citrine said firmly. "Captain Liserian, I want you to assemble a small task force to infiltrate the compound. If you can, rescue Isran and begin to take out the Suban leaders there. Afterwards, we'll plan for reinforcements with greater firepower to sweep the compound and the city, and another to start evacuating the slaves. They'll have to stay here until those who do not wish to fight can be sent to Aether."

"But General, with all due respect, we're just not ready," Another officer cried. "We've been planning this invasion for months, but the plans aren't ready, we don't have enough forces to ensure a victory."

"War rarely waits for you to be ready for it," Citrine countered. "We will do what we must with what we have." She turned towards Caro, a look of strong urgency on her face. "Go, as quickly as you can. Isran may not have the time."

* * *

 **Hi everyone! Thanks for continuing to read this! I apologize for this chapter's brevity, but I promise the next one will be a lot longer. I love the support this has gotten, and if you like it, please review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Eight**

The sun was only beginning to rise as nine speeders raced across the grassy plains, parting in a v-formation with Caro at the lead. Etka and Ferren flanked her along either side, and five other soldiers from the base consisted of the rest. All wore tattered and worn robes, concealing the ammunition and weapons they carried underneath. Caro wore a scarf wrapped over her hair, partially concealing her identity.

Their party arrived just as the slaves on the farm were beginning to rise, and Caro hurried amongst their slowly filtering between their ranks towards the Dyonin cabin. She threw open the door, hearing a startled shriek in response. Jaya and Shilah were inside, and Jaya ran towards Caro, suddenly throwing her arms around her neck in a tight embrace.

Caro had not been expecting this, and was taken aback as Jaya began to cry. Slowly, she put her arms around Jaya, holding her tightly. "They took him!" Jaya exclaimed through her tears, looking up at Caro in complete devastation. Shilah hung back, completely silent but wearing an expression full of fear. Caro knew that she understood. "Late last night, Caro, after you came -"

"I know, and I need you to help me," Caro said firmly. Jaya's face was flushed, her eyes red. "We're here to rescue him and liberate the compound, but I need you to focus. Where did they take Isran?"

Jaya shook her head, looking towards her twin, lost. "Towards the center building, but beyond that, I'm not sure," Her face crinkled, and tears began to flow again. "Caro, they're going to kill him!"

"Where have they done executions in the past?" Caro demanded, pushing through. "This is urgent, Jaya."

"In - In front of everybody," She stammered, blinking. "To - To make an example out of someone."

There was a commotion outside, people beginning to talk, and Caro nodded. The time was coming soon. "Stay close to Shilah," She said firmly. "When the time comes, you and Shilah have to get out of here. Run to the back fence and feel until you find a tear in the metal. Crawl through and get out into the streets. Once you reach an entrance, just run, as far as you can, straight ahead. You'll hit the resistance base, they'll help you there."

"How will I know?" Jaya asked worriedly. She took Shilah's hand in hers, clasping it tightly.

"You just will," Caro said, turning to go. She stepped outside the shack, the Dyonin twins right behind her, and pulled her scarf lower over her face. All of the slaves were gathered in a massive cluster just before the collapsed belltower. Within the crowd, Caro spotted Ferren and Etka, who nodded when they saw her, urging her forwards. Caro pressed herself amongst the tightly-packed bodies, the acrid smell of sweat and dust burning her nose.

Ahead, several Suban overseers were moving towards the rubble, surrounding Isran, whose arms were bound tightly behind his back with shackles. His nose was bleeding, but he carried himself still with dignity, his back straight, shoulders squared. His eyes were alert, surveying the crowd. Caro knew that he was looking for his sisters.

Isran was pushed up onto a cluster of collapsed bricks, then forced to kneel, a heavy blaster aimed at his head. Everyone around him could clearly see him from this vantage point, and Caro made her way straight to the front.

"For being caught with a weapon and upon suspect of treason, Subject 14602 will be subject to death!" A Suban cried out over the yard. There was silence, the crowd paralyzed by fear. "Any co-conspirators planning any type of rebellion or disobedience will face the same fate as he!"

Caro lunged forwards, igniting and throwing her lightsaber out towards Isran's captor. It swung outwards in arcing circles, singing, and Isran ducked, just as the blade severed the Suban's head in a neat slice through his neck. Caro summoned her blade back to her, and caught it in her left hand like a boomerang, bending her knee.

There was a stunned silence, as Caro rose to her full height, throwing back the scarf that covered her head. "The resistance will _not_ be intimidated by you," She announced, her voice echoing loudly over the yard. It was as if she had cast a spell, and the yard burst into chaos.

The crowds began to disperse, some running back towards their homes, some for the fields, as the Resistance fighters began to shoot. Isran jumped to his feet, leaping off the rubble pile with his hands still bound behind him. He hit the ground hard, and sprang back to his feet. Caro hurried towards him and severed his bonds with her blade. "Go!" She cried, as chaos began to envelop the yard around them. "Jaya and Shilah are already on their way out!"

Etka hurried up towards them, and tossed Isran a blaster, which he caught with ease. "Jaya can take care of both of them," Isran said darkly, wiping the blood from his face with his sleeve. "I'm not going to stand down any longer." He brushed past Caro, knocking into her shoulder as he did so, and Caro grit her teeth. Isran had every right to be furious with her, but at least he was alive.

"We have to secure the command center," Etka said, just as blaster fire from their opposition rang out. They began to charge forwards, pushing through the flocks of people who were running past them in all directions. Caro's blade swung deftly through the air as she ran, her lungs taking in the dry dusty air around her in shallow breaths.

She could hear the sound of blaster fire before she saw it's source, one of the Suban carrying a massive weapon and firing indiscriminately into the crowd. Screams followed in the wake, and Caro leapt forwards, swinging her lightsaber. she could strike, he turned the weapon on her, firing and forcing her to deflect.

"Jedi scum!" The overseer shouted, swinging out a massive arm and sending Caro flying into the ground so hard she could have sworn she felt a rib crack. She wheezed, picking herself off the ground and quickly rolled out of the way as the Suban shot his weapon into the dust.

Caro grasped for her blade, still struggling for breath, when suddenly, there was a series of shots in rapid succession. The Suban's body danced midair, convulsing violently as though it was being held up by the blaster fire alone, before landing in the ground in a plume of dust. Caro looked up to see Ferren running towards her, extending an arm and pulling her to her feet. "I owe you one," Caro breathed in thanks, and they began to hurry forwards, making towards the center building.

More reinforcements were coming out of the compound's center, and with a jolt, Caro realized that they might be far more outnumbered than she had initially thought. Still, she pressed forwards, her legs carrying her through battle, and she met an enemy soldier mid-stride. The Suban aimed his blaster at her, preparing to fire, but she was too fast. With one stroke of her blade, Caro sliced the weapon in half with a small explosion. With a second, she had cleaved the body in two, a diagonal cut slicing the beast down. Caro jumped over the body, the rage of the battle charging through her veins.

She had felt this anger before, this thirst for violence that was so far beyond what her teachers back at the Jedi Temple had taught her. _Use compassion, kill with mercy, not out of hate._ But mercy and compassion were the last things on her mind. She moved forwards, the heat of the battle firing through her system, and struck out again, severing the club-like arm of another Suban warrior before cutting off it's head.

"Ahead!" Ferren was shouting, and Caro turned to see the few members they had left charging towards the compound center building. Blaster fire tore past them, and Caro narrowly deflected shots with her blade, following the charge ahead.

More enemy soldiers were arriving, tearing in on vehicles from inside the settlement of Yliad, and from the compound itself. Her small party was being attacked from both the front and the side, and the few of them could not hold off for much longer.

Caro stood still, taking a deep breath and steadying herself, before levitating a massive piece of the broken belltower up in the air. "Get down!" She shouted, before hurling it at the soldiers on the side, sending bodies flying as the chunk of stone and brick skidded into the earth. Caro lifted another to throw, when a shot sang past her side, grazing the skin. She dropped the block and pressed her hands against her side, feeling the ache of a burn, and the wetness of blood. It wasn't deep, she could feel it, but the pain was torturous.

"Get up!" Caro scarcely had time to raise her head before Isran had seized her by the arm, dragging her forwards and to her feet. "We still need you!"

She was about to snap back with a retort - did he think she was just sitting around? - when they were interrupted by a massive roar from overhead. The air pulsed and blasts of wind blew back their hair as they both looked up to see the resistance airships soaring over the compound and over the grainfields, firing into the ranks of the Suban.

"Look out!" Came a cry, as another volley of blaster fire soared towards them. His hand still tightly around Caro's arm, Isran pulled her to the ground as blasts of red light soared over their heads. She gave him a hard look, and he let her go.

"It would look bad if you died under my watch," He leered, and Caro grit her teeth, getting to her feet and slashing a blast away with her lightsaber.

"It's a good thing I don't need you to protect me then!" She shouted, charging forwards again. Her side burned like a hot iron was being pressed into it, and Caro pressed her hand against the wound, fighting off enemy fire with her free arm.

Isran ran ahead, passing her and taking out Suban soldiers as he went, relishing the heat of battle just as much as she. Caro had lost sight of Ferren, but she could tell that the battle was turning their way. Resistance troops were beginning to rappel off of airships, joining their ranks, and Etka caught up to Caro's side.

Isran turned, directing his orders towards the burgeoning army assembling around them. "Secure the central building!" His booming voice soared over the battle around them. "Get inside the -"

There was the crack of blaster fire and Isran's shoulder jerked back, like a puppet on a string. He reached to raise his blaster, and another shot tore through his chest, throwing him off of his feet. " _Isran_!" Etka shouted, running forwards under a storm of blaster fire. Caro followed suit, her yellow blade swinging, deflecting shots. Isran was struggling to stand, and collapsed to the ground when Etka reached his side. He tossed down his blaster, then began to fumble for his intercom, pressing his free hand over the wound in Isran's shoulder, trying to stop the blood.

"Medic! Medic!" Etka shouted frantically, exchanging terrified glances at the battleships soaring overhead, praying for help. Isran was gasping in pain, his face clenched up in agony, and Caro knelt down beside them, sheathing her blade. Blood was seeping through the tan of his clothing, blossoming outwards like flowers in bloom.

"Cover me," She said, and Etka picked up his blaster, taking a knee and swiveling around, firing at any who got too close. "Isran, I can help you, if you just let me _see_ the wound -"

"No!" He shouted, slapping her hand away and trying to push himself upwards on his own. "I'm fine, I don't need a medic -" His face twisted in pain, and he gasped for breath.

"Isran, please!" Caro shouted, grabbing him by the shoulders and pushing him down onto his back. "You're going to make the wound worse!"

"G - Get off me!" He shouted, obviously in tremendous pain. Sweat coated his brow, and his blood was beginning to stain the dust of the earth. A flash of anger crossed over Caro's face.

"I can _help_ you, if you'd just _let_ me!"

"You've done enough!" He snarled, his eyes livid. "I don't want your Jedi magic -"

" _Isran!"_ They all flinched, hearing Jaya's anguished cry as she ran towards them, Shilah running alongside her and pulling her by the hand. Isran looked up at them in shock, then in fear. He didn't want them to watch him die.

"I told you to run!" Caro cried, more worried than anything.

"Shilah wouldn't leave! I tried but she started running here -" Jaya fell to her knees, looking at Caro, then down at her brother in desperation, tears making a volatile threat to appear. "You can't die! You can't leave us!"

Caro looked up as a small aircraft began to descend around them, sending clouds of dust in their faces and blowing their hair back behind them. Rebel soldiers hopped out, wielding blasters. "Take him first!" Caro shouted, helping to lift Isran's body with the Force, with his protestations filling the din of the battle around them. Caro hopped on the aircraft after them, before extending an arm to pull Shilah and Jaya up after her. Etka was the last to climb on, and shouted for the pilots to go.

They burst up into the air, and the two medic droids struggled to hold Isran down against a cot as they took off once more, heading back towards the base. Blood was everywhere, splattered on the floor, drenching Isran's shirt, and he had lost too much of it already.

"Do something!" Jaya was crying, being held back by Etka both for her safety and her brother's as the craft climbed higher into the air. The medic droids were struggling to insert an IV line, to fit an oxygen mask over his head, but Isran was fighting against it, trying to brush them off.

"Let me...see my sisters," He moaned, considerably weaker this time. Caro recognized this as resignation, but she would be damned before she let him die in front of the last family he had left. She wouldn't do that to Jaya.

"That with which binds us, surrounds us," Shilah murmured amongst the chaos, the tension in the room. "It is the light within the darkness, the grey between…"

"The Force!" Etka shouted, realizing. "Use the Force!"

Caro charged forwards, pushing the droids out of the way. Isran was too weak to protest this time, and Caro placed her hand across his shoulder, another over the wound in his abdomen. Isran looked up at her, and she saw the fire in his eyes. He wasn't going to give up yet.

Caro quieted herself, made herself breathe, and then focused, concentrating all of her energy onto his wound. A soft, glowing blue light appeared beneath her hands, forming a connection between them. _Take my strength._

She could hear distant things around her as she shifted into meditation, the sound of laser blasts tearing from the ship, _there's more enemy fire!,_ the cool, collected voices of the droids, _the odds of the patient surviving are very slim; he's been critically hit and has lost too much blood,_ Jaya's quiet weeping, Etka's voice, struggling to give her strength, _he'll be alright, she's going to save him…_ All of this sounded as though it were coming in from behind a fog. She concentrated all of her energy into the single beam of blue light, holding it over his wounds, his blood painting her hands. _Focus, Caro!_

He had stopped crying out in pain, but he wasn't gone yet, she could feel him, still alive, still struggling for breath. His heartbeat sounded in her ears, still steady, but too slow. There was more to this too, his fear, the pain he felt, his desperation for control over his life again, the anger charging through his veins. She could feel his loss, the ache he felt for those he had loved, those who had died. Grief.

The world around her was completely fading away. Underneath her hands, his body was healing. The energy between them was combining, healing torn flesh, strengthening his cells. Her hands were covered in his blood, but his wounds were closing, strengthening underneath the light. He would live...

Caro dropped to the ground, her hands falling away from a woundless abdomen. She had done it, but she had no more left to give. Around them, people flocked to the landed aircraft, and she realized they had arrived back at the base. Medics took Isran, wheeling him away on a stretcher, and Caro barely felt the strong arms lifting her off of the ground, carrying her to the medbay. She was conscious, but barely, her vision blurring the shapes of the scene around her.

"I wasn't strong enough…" She breathed, her words muddled and weak. Force healing Isran had taken all of her power she had left. "I couldn't complete…"

"No," Etka said gently, helping her down onto a cot. "I don't know how you did it, but you did it. The medic team has him now. He's going to make it."


	9. Chapter 9

**Nine**

"Where is she?"

Ferren had ran to the med bay as soon as she had landed back on the base. Her hair was slick with sweat, her face flushed after the heat of battle. She was exhausted, wanting nothing more than to lie down and rest, but she had heard the reports - Isran had gone down, shot twice, and then soon after, Caro, passing out on the ship taking them back to the base. There was no way that Caro could have died, Ferren knew that to be true deep within her heart, but a tantalizing fear gripped her. No one seemed to understand what was going on, or at least they wouldn't tell her.

Etka met her outside the doors. His clothes were swathed in blood, fingerprints lining his shoulders, but Ferren realized that it wasn't his own. "She's inside," He told her gently, and she pushed past him, moving around the teams of medical staff flocking to the injured.

She found her, lying on a bed towards the end of the room, with oxygen tubes in her nose and an IV drip through her arm. "We don't know what to do," A male nurse said as Ferren approached, looking lost.

"What happened?" Ferren asked feverishly, kneeling down beside Caro. She was resting, her eyes closed serenely, breathing softly, but there was something wrong. Her breaths were too slow, too shallow, and the heart monitor at her side was pulsating much too far apart to be considered normal.

"Her heart rate is too low, and she's too weak to even wake up," The nurse replied. "Aside from the wound on her side, which is very minor, we just don't understand what's wrong. It's like all of her strength has left her - she's giving up."

"Caro _doesn't_ give up," Ferren snapped, her eyes flaring with anger. She clasped Caro's hand, trying to ignore how shaky her fingers were. "She doesn't… you don't…" She couldn't continue, her emotions threatening to overflow.

"After Isran was - was shot, she used - I don't know, I don't really understand - she used the Force to save him," Etka explained, uncertain. "There was this soft blue light from her hands, and she used that, I guess, to heal him." His eyes shifted beyond Ferren, and she turned, seeing Isran lying in a bed, medics wrapping up his shoulder as a blood transfusion hung from a small bag beside his head. He was watching them all, a strange look on his face, but he did not look like a man who had been shot twice. He didn't look as deathly still as Caro.

Ferren got to her feet, anger and fear stirring within her. "This is _your_ fault!" She shouted, and Isran actually flinched, meeting her outburst with an expression of alarm. "She did this to save you, and you - you've treated her horribly ever since you met!" Ferren began to charge towards him, before Etka grabbed her from behind, wrapping his arms around her, holding her back.

"Ferren, calm down -"

" _No!"_ She shouted, getting hysterical. She was going to lose her… Caro was going to die like this, and there was nothing Ferren could do to save her this time. "Caro's going to die, and it's _this_ bastard's fault!" Her lip quivered, and her eyes threatened hot, angry tears. She squirmed in Etka's arms, but didn't push him away.

"Take her out of here," The male nurse ordered, looking cross. "She's disturbing the other patients -"

"We're going," Etka began, but Ferren forced herself to calm down, taking a deep breath and relaxing her body completely.

"No, I'm fine, I'll be quiet, I just -" The tears came then, and she turned away, mortified at the thought of anyone but Caro seeing her cry. No one stopped her when she took a seat alongside Caro, grasping her hand again and squeezing tightly. She noticed Etka take a careful seat beside her, but didn't react.

"Has this ever happened before?" He asked softly, and she still didn't look at him, shaking her head.

"No, I don't understand…" Her voice was convoluted by the lump in her throat, and she twisted her head away from him, so that he wouldn't see. Ferren caught Isran watching, and gave him a foul, bitter look.

"How did you get to know Caro?" Etka asked, and Ferren realized that he was being kind, trying to distract her. Reluctantly, she turned towards him, keeping her head bowed.

"I met her three years ago," She said softly. "On the planet Dantooine. She was there with a small squadron of clone troopers on a diplomatic mission…"

 _The sun was so bright that Ferren had to squint to see the four figures approaching the ship yard, three helmeted clone troopers, wielding blasters and scanning the horizon around the yard, ever alert. In front of them walked the Jedi knight, her weapon sheathed nobly at her belt, content without it drawn. She knew that they were arriving in the tiny spaceport - rumors of a Jedi's arrival had spread through the tiny town like wildfire, but this was the first that Ferren had seen of her._

 _Ferren stood up from the engine that she was repairing, her hands black with grease and her hair pulled back with a spare rag. The small party stepped into the yard, and Ferren realized that they were here to talk with her. The Jedi smiled at her, warm brown eyes crinkling slightly at the edges. "Are you a pilot?" She asked, removing her hood. She was tall, and had dark hair plaited off to the side of her face. She was strong-looking, strong enough to best Ferren in a fight based off of muscle alone, but she carried herself with a sort of effortless grace that softened her strength._

" _Yes," Ferren replied, eyeing the clone troopers beside her. "Is there something that I can help you with?"_

" _We need someone to take us to the capital city," The Jedi replied. "We'd pay in galactic credits - upfront. It's just urgent that we get there soon."_

" _Sure," Ferren said, getting to her feet and wiping her hands on her pants. "I'd be… honored to do it."_

 _The Jedi smiled again, clearly grateful. "Thank you," She said. "I understand if you need to gather some of your things. We can wait here for you."_

 _Ferren grinned, deciding that she was going to like her. "I'm pretty much set, learned to live lightly throughout the years. I'm Ferren, by the way. Ferren Soto."_

" _Caro Tejal," The Jedi smiled at her. "These are my men, Commander Picton -"_

 _Their introduction never got beyond that, as Ferren saw the clone trooper put down his intercom, reaching for his blaster. The rest of what happened began in a blur. There were shots fired, and Ferren remembered grabbing Caro by the hand, dragging her under the belly of a ship. She could never forget the look on Caro's face, her eyes harrowed, her mouth open in shock. It was a look of complete betrayal, of total loss._

" _What's happening!?" Ferren cried, as they darted in between ships, dodging fire._

" _I don't know," Caro said, sounding hollow. She took out her blade, knowing what she would have to do next. Her face changed, masking the pain, the hurt she felt, the loss. She had the look of someone who was prepared to face an ultimatum. "Ferren Soto, I'll hold them off. Get out of the shipyard while you still can."_

 _Ferren had taken off, trusting that the Jedi could handle a few troopers on her own and jumped into a Y-Wing, revving up the engine on her own. Caro was the experienced warrior, not she. Blaster shots careened throughout the shipyard, striking dormant spacecraft and narrowly missing the bodies of droids, who hurried and fled in panic._

 _Ferren looked back, and she paused, half inside the cockpit of a fighter ship, when she saw Caro take a shot to the leg, falling to her knee in pain._

" _Run away from here!" Caro shouted, still holding her spot in front of a cruiser, looking up at Ferren inside the Y-Wing. "Protect yourself!"_

 _Ferren was frozen by fear, watching as the Jedi struggled to fend them off. Caro was going to die here, and yet she was thinking of her first, someone she had only just met, urging her to save herself._

 _She leapt out of the cockpit, pulling out her blaster as Caro took another shot, right in the belly, then another in the arm. Ferren began firing, striking one of the clone troopers in the head, a killing blow. She hurried to the Jedi's side, throwing her arm over her shoulder and lifting her to her feet. Caro looked up at Ferren in disbelief, barely able to stand due to the pain._

" _You should...run…"_

" _Let go of the Jedi!" Commander Picton shouted, and Caro winced. "She is wanted dead upon capture by the Empire!"_

" _You won't have her!" Ferren shouted, firing two shots at the Commander as she hobbled away with Caro limping alongside her. She was bleeding heavily now, barely able to stand up on her own from the loss of blood and the pain._

" _You have to get into the cockpit," Ferren urged, struggling to help Caro up the ladder. She was valiantly trying, but in her condition, she could barely lift her arms without being overcome with a searing heat. "I can get you out of here if you can get to the cockpit."_

 _Caro groaned, forcing herself upwards as Ferren fired back against Commander Picton, boosting Caro up with her shoulders at the same time. Fear of the uncertain gripped her heart, but Ferren knew that she couldn't leave Caro like this. As soon as she was safely inside, Ferren scrambled in after her, throwing herself into the pilot's seat and blasting out of the shipyard with blaster fire at her heels._

 _Ferren tore out of the atmosphere, with Caro lying half-conscious behind her, broken, bleeding, silent tears running down her face. Ferren knew that the latter was not from the physical pain._

" _Something has happened," Caro breathed in anguish. "Something terrible. I can feel my brothers and sisters dying, in pain..." Ferren turned her head, to ask her what she meant, but Caro had already passed out._

"We landed in Sud Y'Shul not far after, and I had to nurse her back to health," Ferren said softly to a captivated audience. "I didn't even really know her then, but she needed me, and I couldn't abandon someone who had just gotten everything taken from her. When Caro had gotten better, we later learned that there had been instructions to kill all Jedi. An order was passed just as the Empire gained power - Order 66. The Jedi Temple on Coruscant was destroyed, and everyone, from the Jedi Masters to the younglings there were massacred."

"She's the last one left then?" Etka asked gently.

"There could be other survivors, but we just don't know," Ferren returned, watching Caro. "It's too dangerous to be in any place that's too populated - I didn't even want her to come here because of the Empire's connections with Nikara. She puts herself in danger every time she sets foot outside. That's how it's become."

"She's a survivor then," Etka said. "And she's strong, I can tell. She'll pull through this, I know it."

Ferren looked over at him, meeting his earnest gaze, and wrapped her arms around his neck, holding onto him tightly. He returned the embrace, his arms around her back, between her shoulderblades, unquestioning. _I am here._ She knew that too.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Hi all! Thanks for still reading this. Did you hear the announcement that came out about Episode 8 being called The Last Jedi? I'm so excited for the new film and I can't wait to see where the series goes next!**


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